Shin Ryuu Densetsu
by Airess Byrd
Summary: Three months after the events in Dragon Legend, peace has once again been restored to the planet. However, not all is right. New dangers threaten the planet as old and new allies are at hand. And somewhere, somehow, a friend may still be alive...
1. Chapter 1

Standard disclaimer: I do not own Breath of Fire, Capcom does. I do, however, own the characters that appear in this fanfic, save a couple of characters that originally appeared in previous games. The characters Vin and Manna belong to Mana Sphere. Katrina (Cat) Parson belongs to Catstar4. Dustin Table belongs to Dragon. Sarlon Arlop and Mesa belong to Lady Sarlon and are used with permission. That about cover everything? Good, cuz I am only saying all this stuff once.

"_How can you see into my eyes like open doors? Leading you down into my core, where I've become so numb. Without a soul, my spirit's sleeping somewhere cold. Until you find it there and lead it back home"_

_---Bring Me to Life_

Remember Me?

_(Reis)_

Candles aligned the stone walls of the sparsely lit room. The room was in an ancient temple that's actual purpose was long ago forgotten, save a few people standing around a marble circular table, facing a figure in a black hooded cloak.

"Master of Ceremonies, we, your faithful servants are here." One of the figures said.

"Are all preparations set for the ceremony?" The Master of Ceremonies asked with her back to the other cloaked figures.

One of the figures sighed and turned away. "We are only half prepared for the ceremony, m'lady. Please, we ask for more time in order to prepare."

The Master of Ceremonies turned to the other cloaked figures. Her face was covered in a glass white mask, aligned with various colored jewels. She raised a hand and placed it on the table. "We are running out of time. With the current threat of Taijkos and Dracen out of the way, things will run much smoother, but we will not have much time."

"What does m'lady wish us to do?" A male voice asked.

"Find the ones who will try to stop us and kill them. I have already seen two of the ones who will wish to stop us. Do not let them succeed. Stop them at all costs."

"Who are we looking for?" Another figure asked.

"A Rune Maiden and a Dark Dragon, first of all. As of the others, I do not know." The Master of Ceremonies growled.

"What of the Summoner?" The same figure asked. "What of the Titan?"

"The Summoner… if she tries to attack…" The Master of Ceremonies let the sentence hang. "Leave the Titan and the Summoner to me and only focus on completing the preparations. We need the two in order to complete preparations."

"Shall we find the test subject?" Yet another figure asked.

"Yes and hurry. She will not be able to last long in this world without aide. Bring her back to Reis immediately."

"And of the other?" the first figure asked.

"I will deal with that matter myself. You are all dismissed."

As the cloaked figures filed out of the room, The Master of Ceremonies turned to a shadowed figure standing in a hidden doorway. "Anjira, you heard everything, yes?"

A young girl with long pink hair and green eyes stepped forward. She was dressed in a white and greenish-blue, petal dress. "Yes, I heard everything. What do you want?"

"You know better than anyone that the world will die if the ceremony does not take place before the next Harvest Moon. As you know with you tie with Yggdrasil, something must be done, yes Tree Child?"

Anjira did nothing but stare at the cloaked figure. "You want me to find the test subject. Do you not think that your minions can do it?"

"They will fail." She simply said. "I sense a great force coming and it is tied to the Destined. The Rune Maiden… she may be the one who will determine whether or not we succeed. Find all that ally themselves with her and kill them."

"Whatever you say, lady." Anjira said. The doorway where she was standing went dark. Anjira no where to be seen.

The Master of Ceremonies turned to the marble table. Upon the table was a motionless body laying on top of it. She smirked and touched the figure's forehead. A light formed on the figure's forehead and a mark appeared in the shape of a dragon's claw. A light formed around the body and shocked her, jarring her and causing her to jump back a few feet.

"You can only fight me for so long before you lose strength. You are nothing more than an empty scrap… You pose no threat to me… but still, you can be of some use… yes. I will be able to use this lifeless scrap."

Shimmers in the air against the far wall caught The Master of Ceremonies' attention, but when she turned, it was gone. She shook her head and walked out of the room. A shadow stared at the motionless body, then shook its head. It walked over to the body and glanced at it. The body looked for the entire world as if was asleep, except for the fact that the body's eyes were open. The figure's eyes were half closed with a glazed and hollow look to them, as if the figure wasn't even there.

The shadow turned to a noise that echoed in the empty room. A red cloaked figure appeared in the room, right beside the shadowed figure.

_Not much time is left for you, is it? _The figure spoke with a strong, deep baritone voice. The shadow nodded its head.

_The Rune Maiden, the Summoner, and the Destined are yours and the child's only hope then. If they are able to complete the ceremony, then the world is doomed. _The shadow nodded in agreement. _You should not linger here any longer. If she catches you, then she will be one step closer to completing the ceremony. Go. _

The air shimmered around the shadow and the figure. With that, the shadow

vanished, only leaving the cloaked man and the lifeless body. The man walked over to the body. _Hold on a little longer. They will be here soon. _And with that, the man vanished.

_(Castle Anglous)_

"_I will always be there for you…"_

"Wait… no… please! Don't go!" Nina cried out, tossing and turning in her bed, her grip on her sheets like iron.

For the past three months, all Nina could do was think about what had happened when they fought Dracen. Ryu had promised that he would keep everyone safe, and he did. But the cost was more than anyone had thought. After the battle was over, Ryu and Dracen were no where to be found. When Nina had returned home with the infant Tarina, she told her parents everything. They understood and started a search for Ryu immediately.

Kane had reported to Emperor Jonothan of the results of the battle, leaving out details about him being a dragon of course. Much like the king and queen of Anglous, he sent out a search party to try and find Ryu, too. Sora pulled every string she had with the Ranger's Guild and even had them helping with the search too. Troy's soldiers searched the oceans over, but much like everyone else, they could not find any traces of the light dragon.

After the three months searching for Ryu, everyone had basically given up. Manna had told everyone that she could no longer sense his life force and Mina and Deis confirmed what the Summoner had said. When she was told that they could not find Ryu, Nina fell into a deeper depression.

"I… know that I hurt you… and I'm sorry…" "After this is all over… let's talk… there's something I want to tell you…" 

"Come back!" Nina screamed, bolting upright in bed. She kicked off the covers and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. She then stood up and straightened out her white, spaghetti-string silk nightgown that fell to the floor. She walked over to her dresser and sat down in front of the mirror and tried to untangle her short hair.

"Why did I just let you leave like that without saying anything to you…" Nina whispered, tears starting to streak down her cheeks.

"Nina?" A young voice asked as the door opened. "Are you crying?"

"Huh?" Nina mumbled, wiping her eyes. "Oh, hi."

A small girl about five years old with black hair that was tied up into two small ponytails, wearing a two piece blue pajama set walked into the room and quietly closed the door. The little girl walked over to Nina and placed her small hands on the dresser. Honey was perch up on her shoulder.

"What's wrong?"

Nina shook her head. "Nothing's wrong Tarina. I just had a bad dream…"

"About him?" The little girl asked.

In the three months that Nina had brought Tarina to Anglous, the child shot up in age. She had grown rapidly, surprising and shocking every doctor and healer in the land. They just could not explain why an infant would physically age to that of a five-year-old in just the matter of three months. When Nina asked Deis, the Indigo's only conclusion was that it had something to do with Tarina's link with Infinity. She also said that Tarina would probably stop aging after a certain amount of time and age normally.

Nina's parents were not too thrilled about the child at first, but Nina slowly convinced them to let the child stay. Finally, after constant yelling, arguing, and pleading, they let the child stay and raised her like their own. Nina now looked at the child like she was her little sister.

When Nina felt sad or depressed, Tarina always showed up to cheer her up. The child was a welcome relief, but at the same time, tortured Nina. The child herself was innocent, but her emerald eyes reflected Ryu's. In fact, Ryu and Tarina's eyes looked exactly the same. When Nina looked into Tarina's eyes, it was almost as if she saw Ryu's eyes.

"Yeah… about him." Nina responded. "What are you doing up so late?"

Tarina sheepishly looked at the floor. "I couldn't sleep." She replied.

"Why?" Nina asked.

"I, had a bad dream… there were these people in a dark place. They were going to do something bad. They had someone tied to a table and there was this lady that was hurting him…" Tarina said calmly.

What Nina didn't get was how such a young child could be so calm. It never ceased to amaze her. Tarina could scratch her elbow and it would be bleeding, but she would never cry or make a sound.

"Well," Nina said as she stood up and picked up Tarina and Honey. "We shouldn't let bad dreams keep us awake all night. We have to get plenty if sleep for the Harvest Festival coming up. We get to help them set up preparations."

"Okay." Tarina said.

"Right." Nina sighed. At least getting ready for the festival was keeping her mind off of Ryu's possible death.

Yet still, something didn't feel right about the festival…

_(Carter City: College classroom)_

Students quickly filed into the classroom as the clock struck nine o'clock A.M. The teacher insisted on every student being on time. No exceptions. A young man with short, spiked blond hair walked into the room and gravitated towards the tables in the back. Rows and rows of tables with black laptops on them lined the room. At the front of the room was a long whiteboard with the words: "Advanced Physics of Astronomical Trigonometry and Equations" written on it in black marker. A desk with a computer and various books cluttered on it sat to the right of the board.

An older man, with gray short hair, wearing really thick, coke-bottle glasses and a suit and tie stood at the front of the whiteboard, maker and attendance book in either hand. He watched as the students filed in and took their seats.

The young man from earlier plopped his books on the table and swung his backpack over the back of the chair. He was dressed in a red short sleeved T-shirt with a white long sleeved shirt underneath. He wore brown baggy pants and white sneakers. He yawned and placed his head in his hand and leaned on the table as the professor started to drone on and on about something that had to do with something that was needed to finish something… or something like that.

It wasn't as if the blond hated this class. In fact, he liked it. Only really smart people took this class for their major in Advance Aerodynamics and Physics. He yawned as his mind wandered. He was the Galaxy Operative Director/Dungeon Master of the college's local D&D group. He had to come up with a killer dungeon for this afternoon's game.

"If a train in Tokyo was traveling at about 75 MPH and a train on the moon was traveling at about the same speed, assuming they could fly and that they didn't run out of gas, how long before they collide in Los Angeles?" The teacher asked.

Not a student dared to raise their hand with the answer. The teacher looked around the room and noticed the blond looking really bored. "Table? Dustin Table? Care to enlighten us with the answer?"

The student in question lazily looked over to the teacher. "Two?" Dustin said.

"Yes! That is most certainly correct. See class? This is what happens when you pay attention. You learn. Now open your books to page three and…"

Dustin yawned and opened his book. Several students glared at the blond before turning back around and going back to their studies. Dustin just shrugged. Worse case scenario: He's run like the hounds of crap were on his heels. He could run really fast.

_(Outside Sarlon's classroom)_

At another location at the college, a certain black haired woman in a two piece business suit made her way to the social studies wing of the building. Three months of glorious peace and quiet for her and her soon to be husband. No attacks, no interruptions, and certainly no talk about blue hair dragons or psychos wanting world domination. No, just blissful peace.

In those months of quietness, Sarlon Arlop took on the job of teaching Ancient History at the local college. Far, far away and teaching at a decent sized college called ETSU, Sarlon thought that her peace and quietness would last forever.

Apparently fate had other ideas.

Standing in the doorway of her classroom was an attractive young woman with blue hair bound back in a bun. She was also wearing a two piece business suit and a pair of thin-framed glasses. The woman smirks and waved.

"Crapo Professor Arlop."

Sarlon's left eye started to twitch. That look… that voice… that smirk! It could only be one person…

"SNAKE-WITCH!" Sarlon screamed loud enough to attract the attention of several students and factuality.

Deis raised her hand. "I am just here to tell you that Taijkos has been taken care of. No more threat."

Sarlon looked visibly relieved. "Good. Thank you for telling me that… now shoo so I can go teach…"

"Actually…" Deis grinned. "I am on vacation."

Sarlon's eyes narrowed. "So am I…"

"I am bored." Deis grinned as she placed her arm around Sarlon's shoulder. "So, I thought that I would stay here."

"W-what?" Sarlon asked, shaking and praying that Deis was not about to say what she was going to say.

"So, I will spend my vacation with YOU!" Deis grinned.

"NONONONONONONONONO!" Sarlon screamed. "SNAKE-WITCH!" Sarlon ran over to the elevator and started screaming and ranting about Deis' appearance.

"SNAKE-WITCH!"

_(Dean's office)_

"So let me get this straight Professor Arlop." The Dean said, looking straight at Sarlon from where she was sitting at her desk. "You had a momentary lapse of sanity and ran through the building screaming something about a snake and a witch?"

"Yes ma'am." Sarlon said, standing in front of the desk, looking down at the floor sheepishly. "I did."

"I also have heard that you grabbed a hold of several students and faculty members and screamed in their faces. Care to explain why?"

"I…I have been really stressed out lately and clearly was not thinking straight." Sarlon lied through her teeth. The Dean was not about to believe the truth, that is Deis coming to Earth and annoying the crap out of her.

"Well, the only thing I can say is that we are giving you a temporary leave of absence."

"Wait!" Sarlon said, but the Dean interrupted her.

"Either that, or you will have to check into the nearest mental facility for stress evaluation."

"I will take the leave of absence." Sarlon grumbled as she walked out of the Dean's office. Sarlon's eyes twitched as she heard a mocking laugh.

Goddess or no, when Sarlon found Deis, she was DEAD MEAT!

_(Outside the college)_

"Dustin's class should have let out by now…" A familiar girl grumbled, leaning up against a wall. She checked her watch. 5:30 PM. He was late. The girl pushed her brown hair out of her face and took off her glasses to clean them. The door to the labs opened and several students walked out, looking really relieved now that the evil math class from crap was over with.

Dustin walked out of the door and spotted the girl. He waved at her and walked over. "Heh, sorry about that Cat. The teacher decided to keep us over for a few hours."

Cat smirked as she rolled her eyes. "_Sure _he did. You enjoyed that class, didn't you?"

"It wasn't as bad as Advanced Aerodynamics and Quadrate Formulas of Physics. Now _that _was hard." Dustin laughed. "So, any home work?"

"Only in Algebra C and English III. I hate being a Junior in high school. It sucks being seventeen."

"Better than nineteen." Dustin laughed. "No wait… never mind."

"Have you heard from Rena at all this summer?" Cat asked.

"Nothing. Heard she went on vacation with some friends."

"Ah… sounds great. Too bad we couldn't go." Cat sighed. Something clicked in the back of her mind, almost as if a lightening bolt striking. "LOOK OUT!" Cat cried, jumping out of the way as a warp portal opened in the air.

Dustin wasn't so lucky. He just stood there dumbstruck as two figures fell from the portal. Manna and Rena landed on top of Dustin, causing the three to go crashing down to the ground and knocking out Dustin. Cat stood, watching as Manna and Rena stood up.

"Cat?" Rena asked. "Um… hi."

"Hi… how did it go?" Cat asked excitedly, jumping up and down. "Did you guys defeat that crazy guy?"

"Um… yeah, we did." Rena said, the warp portal still high over head.

As Rena decided to fill Cat in on the details on what happened over the course of the past six months, Dustin came too and stared up into the sky.

"Huh?" Dustin mumbled. He had no idea what the shiny thing in the sky was, but it looked really cool. It was close enough to the ground that he could actually touch it. He thought he must have been dreaming, because shiny portals just do not appear in real life. So, he did the only thing he could think of, as seeing that this was his dream.

He touched the portal.

Cat turned around as she saw Dustin being pulled into the portal. She quickly ran after him and upon getting under the portal, she too was suck in. Manna and Rena jerked around as they saw Dustin being pulled into the portal. Manna and Rena groaned as the portal vanished. Manna sighed and swung out her staff and formed another portal. She and Rena jumped back into the portal to retrieve their friends.

_(Castle Anglous)_

Nina sat on her bed, fiddling with a silk handbag that she had made herself. She was dressed in a white gown, with a gold-sectioned skirt; gold bands adorn her upper arms with a pale bluish material attached from them. Her golden hair was fixed up into layers that fell around her face. Tears streamed down her face once again.

Nina screamed as a portal opened up just above her bed and a strange looking young man fell out of the portal and landed right on top of her, causing them both to go crashing to the ground.

Dustin shook his head and glanced around. Yup, this was definitely a dream. Nina looked at Dustin with a look of curiosity on her face. Dustin grinned. This girl that he was sitting on top of was really beautiful. Nina looked at him and coughed.

"Um, could you please get off of me?" Nina asked.

"Oh, I am sorry." Dustin said, jumping up and extending his hand to Nina. She took it and he helped her up.

"Why are you crying?" Dustin asked, noticing Nina's tears.

"Oh, I am sorry…" Nina whispered, wiping her eyes. "How rude I am… I am Princess Nina de Anglous. And you are?"

"I am…" Dustin began, but then stopped. This was his dream, right? "I am the Galaxy Operative Director! I save the innocent and defeat the evil!"

"…you are a god?" Nina asked curiously.

"Well, not…" Dustin began, but Nina cut him off.

"PLEASE! You have to help me! A dear friend of mine was in a battle and has disappeared! We can't find him anywhere! Please help me look for him." Nina placed her hands over her chest and pleaded with Dustin.

Dustin nodded. "Of course, Princess! I will help you find your friend. But, what will our mode of transportation be?"

Nina grinned. "Let me changed out of this dress and I will show you!" Nina said excitedly as she ran out of the room. Finally, a lead! Maybe she had a hope of finding Ryu now… maybe…

_(City of Anglous)_

"Where are we…?" Rena asked, sprawled out on a stack of hay.

"We are in a barn…" Manna groaned, trying to get into a sitting position. She had landed in the water trough.

"But… _where_?" Cat said, sitting up from the ground. She was the lucky on and landed on the hay outside of the stalls.

Several of the cows and horses stared at the girls from their respected stalls. Farm equipment was hanging on the wooden walls of the barn they were apparently in. Rena and Manna stood up and walked over to Cat. The three nodded and walked outside. Rows of wooden and stone houses lined the cobblestone sidewalks. Rena nodded.

"Anglous. This looks like the lower section of Anglous." Rena said.

"We are back on Asparia." Manna said, leaning on he staff.

"We are on another world?" Cat asked. "The world Kane is from!" She started to get excited.

"Yeah… but where is Dustin…? Oh, no…" Rena said in a deadpan voice.

"What…? Oh." Manna muttered to herself as she looked up in the sky to where Cat and Rena were pointing and saw the Great Bird take off, Dustin and Nina on her back. Nina had changed out of her royal gown. She was wearing a gray short dress with a silver breastplate over her chest. She wore armor pads on her shoulders and gauntlets on each of her wrists. The armor was completed with a pair of brown leather boots that went up to her knees and bandages wrapped around her legs and arms. A rapier was strapped to her back. The Great Bird was heading to the Eastern Lands. Manna and Rena groaned. That meant that they were heading into Imperial territory. Cat looked at the two.

"What's going on?" Cat asked.

"Manna?" Rena asked.

"They are heading to the Imperial Capital." Manna said.

"Where Kane is!" Cat giggled.

"Oh, no…" Rena wailed. "Not another fetch quest! Do we have to go after them and get Dustin home?"

"… yeah… we have to…" Manna muttered.

"YEAH!" Cat cheered. "I get to be in on the adventure this time!"

"Oh, joy." Rena muttered. "The adventure starts all over again…"

To be continued…

12


	2. Chapter 2

Standard disclaimer: I t'nod nwo thaerb fo erif! Kaeps ekil na live FF ssob, I od :P Translation: I don't know breath of fire. Speak like an evil FF boss, I do :P LOL 

AN: Well, this is fun A new chapter for a new series. LOL Well, should we get this ball rolling before I go off on a tangent?

Reese (the new name for Muse): Indeed. But, are you out of ideas for the AN's?

Me: Um….

Well, you get to meet some more of the new characters this chapter You also get to learn a little more about the connection between Kane and Cat…

Though, you're probably wondering who were the cloaked figures from the first chapter, right? Well, that's a secret for now… sorry. But, they play an important part in the story later.

Reese: Translation: they are the bad guys.

Me: DON'T SPOIL THE SURPRISE!

Reese: Yeesh… whatever…

On with the show!

"_With a keen eye for details, only one truth prevails."_

---Shinichi Kudo, _Detective Conan_

Obsessions

_(Laurante)_

Shadows flickered on the walls of the dimly lit room. A wooden desk stood at one corner of the room. On the desk were several thick books on a variety of different subjects, along with several candles that lit up the room. Across from the desk was an unmade bed. A dresser was on the opposite wall next to a closet.

The owner of the room opened the door and slowly walked into the room. The person was Kane Lokhart, Lt. Commander of the Katobario Imperial Army. Kane was dressed in a black shirt and baggy pants, with black steel-toed boots on. He slumped across the room and over to the bed. He dropped his sheathed sword to the ground and kicked off his boots.

He eyed the books on the desk for a moment, before turning back to the bed. He had a lot of work to do, but it was already three in the morning. Study or go to bed, were his dominant thoughts. But, he had already studied for three months on the subject, and it had not gotten him anywhere. The connection that one person shares with another interested him. One could say it was like a red string that tied people together. Kane just thought it was destiny playing out. But after having dreamt about Cat for several years before going to the surface, then actually meeting her (sort of), he became interested in the subject even more.

Finally, he decided that the latter of the two thoughts would be best. The fact of the matter was that the emperor wanted to meet with him and Aersia about something in the morning, and falling asleep while he was talking with his king would not be a wise thing to do. Jonothan was an understanding man, but was not that generous.

Kane yawned as he pulled off his shirt and absentmindedly tossed it to the floor. Kane's bedroom had always been a bit messy, even in Shelder. He was 20 years old and a solider. He surprisingly did not care about neatness. Kane walked over to the dresser and flipped on a light switch. The room lit up and Kane turned to the mirror that was hanging on the wall. He gave himself a quick once over, making sure he was at least somewhat clean, before turning off the light and plopping down, face first on the bed.

_Kane…_

Kane's head snapped up upon hearing his name being called out. Every single time, without fail, when his name was called, it was never a good sign. Kane sat up and glanced over at the wall. Shimmers appeared in the air as what seemed to be a shadow walked towards him.

"What the crap!" Kane yelled, jumping up from the bed and instinctively got into a battle stance.

The shadow stopped. Kane eyed the shadow. "What… the crap are you?" Kane said, not quite sure what to make of the thing.

_Time is running out… _The words echoed in Kane's mind.

"Don't tell me… let me guess. Telepathy?" Kane grumbled, rolling his eyes.

_They are here. The ones that will destroy the world…_

"Don't all the villains try that?" Kane sighed.

_Solona is here…_

"Solona?" Kane asked. "Who's that?"

_There isn't much time left… _

"I must have completely lost my ever loving mind!" Kane yelled to no one. "Here I am, talking to shadows…"

_Protect them from the Master of Ceremonies…_

"What?" Kane yelled in surprise as a sudden wave of nausea hit Kane. Kane staggered and fell to the ground, fighting the urge to vomit.

Reality seemed to quiet literally sift around Kane as a great hall made of stone came into view. Torches aligned the walls, lighting up the dimly lit corridor. At the far end of the hall was a marble table with a body lying atop of it. Kane stood up, still fighting waves of nausea. He staggered over to the table and saw who was lying on top of it. Kane's jaw dropped.

"No way…" Kane whispered.

The figure was a young man in his late teens with long blue hair and green eyes. The figure wore a gray shirt under a long white, sleeveless coat, and brown baggy pants. The figure had a claw mark on his forehead.

Kane just shook his head. "Ryu…?"

Footsteps echoed through the great hall. Kane jerked his head around to see a masked woman in a hooded cloak enter the hall. She smirked and walked towards Kane. "So we meet again, dark dragon."

"Who…" Kane gritted his teeth. "Are you?"

"That is none of your concern, dark dragon. How is it that you are here?" The woman pointed her finger at Kane. "You should not be here… unless… Where is the Rune Maiden? Is this her doing?"

"Rune Maiden?" Kane asked.

"The only ones other than the Rune Maiden that could possibly wield that kind of power are the Ancient Summoners… are they here, too?"

Two figures appeared right behind Kane. One was a woman with long, dark hair. She was dressed in a long white, sleeveless dress with a dark purple robe over it. She held a staff in her hand. The other was a tan, muscular bald man. He wore a gray, sleeveless shirt under a red cloak and brown baggy pants and leather, steel-toed boots. The woman seemed to recoil at the two figures.

The image of the two faded as the woman regained her composure. "Just an image…" She muttered to herself.

"Trying to convince me, or yourself?" Kane smirked.

"You…" The woman thrust her hand forward and a sudden wave of electricity raced from it and rammed into Kane. Kane yelled as the blast hit him and sent him flying across the room. Kane staggered to his feet and glared at the woman.

"What the crap!" Kane snapped. "This isn't making any sense!"

"Of course not. It is too complicated for a primitive mind like yours to comprehend. Just know this: We will win. You cannot stop us."

"You…are the Master of Ceremonies?" Kane muttered, suddenly feeling all energy leave him.

"Hmm… maybe you are smarter than I thought. No matter. You won't be able to figure out what is really happening until it is too late!" The woman turned, her cloak billowing out behind her. She walked towards the entrance and vanished.

Kane shook his head, confused. He looked down at the body once more. His eyes narrowed. "Ryu? If that is you, wake up!"

Kane tensed up suddenly as reality shifted around him once more. Kane collapse and found himself on the floor of his bedroom. Kane weakly got up and sat down on the bed. He looked up and saw the shimmers again.

_She is called the Master of Ceremonies. _The voice said. _Her plan is unclear right now. But she is looking for two people. One is a young girl with wings. She has the other, but only partially. _

Kane's eyes narrowed. "That man on the table… that looked like Ryu…" Kane shook his head. "Who are you anyway?"

_Kane, protect Cat with your life… She may be the only one who has a chance at stopping them…_

"Cat…" Kane said. He then looked up. Another vision struck Kane. A young woman with brown hair stood before him. She wore a green, sleeveless robe that tied at the front with a purple ribbon. Red and green gloves were on either wrist. Red material was wrapped around her feet and held together with green ribbons. The woman disappeared and was replaced with that of a young woman with the same colored hair, only this time she was wearing glasses and a black shirt with a short purple skirt.

Kane smirked as the vision faded. _Beware the golden dragon tear… _the shadow said once more before finally disappearing.

Kane sighed and placed his head in his hands. "Protect Cat, huh?" Kane smirked. "Cat… Just how connected are we, anyway?" Kane mused. "So, am I your knight then?" He smirked. "Fine then. Let all that dare oppose me come. I will cut down all who dare stand in my way!"

_(Mydi: Pub/Inn)_

"Swing, swing! Flying in the air! Swing, swing! Dancing, dancing around!" An obvious drunken man slurred, staggering around a pub. Several other drunken patrons laughed from where they were sitting and gave a toast to the drunken man. The man pushed his straggly blond hair out of his face and staggered over to a stool at the bar and sat down.

The wooden doors of the pub opened, revealing a figure shadowed against the intense rays of the afternoon sun. The figure, a lithe, tanned young man with messy dark brown hair walked into the pub. The man wore a pair of baggy, brown pants and a black, long sleeved shirt under a brown vest. He walked over to the drunken man and pulled up a stool. The man motioned for the bartender to come over with his right hair.

"The strongest drink you have in the place." The man said with a slight accent in his voice.

The bartender nodded as he turned around to prepare the drink. The drunken man sneered and glared at the young man. "Eh, boy! Don'cha know hows to respect ya elders?" The man growled.

"You look no older than I…" The man muttered. "Besides, I was not the one singing about singing and dancing in a drunken stupor, now was I?" The man smirked.

"Whos are you anyways?" The man growled. "I lets no one insults me!" The drunken man roared as he swung his fist. The smaller man smirked and jumped up onto the stool and kicked off, using the drunken man's head as a springboard. He did a back flip and landed on the counter of the bar.

"Yous thinks yous so great for a couples o' tricks…" The drunken man barked. "Yous impressed no ones!" The man growled, grabbing onto the other's ankle. He somewhat quickly pulled the brown headed man's foot from underneath his feet and cause him to come crashing down right onto the counter. The smaller man screamed out in pain as the back of his head made contact with the counter.

"SHI!" The brown head screamed. He could feel the knot that was beginning to form on his head. The knot was forming on a painful, yet healed, wound that he had received there in the previous months. The drunkard laughed as he then proceeded to lift the man into the air and hurl him up against the wall. The young man landed against the wooden wall and left a dent as he slid down and hit the floor with a thud.

The drunkard laughed as he walked over to the younger to finish his butt whooping. The said attackee smirked and jumped out of the way and flipped into the air. He landed on a stool and quickly grabbed hold of the drink that the barkeep had fixed him. He set a new record downing the alcoholic beverage and gave the drunkard a salute.

"Well, that was certainly fun!" he laughed as the drunkard scowled at him. "But, you're just a wee bit too slow!" The man said, holding his pointer finger and thumb about an inch apart. Too bad." The man finished at he narrowly missed another blow to the head. "Peace out!" The man dropped his money for the drink on the counter and jumped over the drunkard's head and landed right next to the doors. He bowed and exited the tavern. The tavern's patrons just stared at the doors.

Outside, the young man grabbed his head and groaned. He slumped off and stumbled over to a park bench and sat down. He sighed and held his head down. "I must be setting some sort of record for getting kicked out of taverns…"

"What kind of record?" A chirpy, squealy, high-pitched voice giggled.

The man groaned and looked behind the bench. There, leaning on the back of the bench was a young girl who looked no older than six or seven. She was wearing a blue and pink jester's cap over her long, wavy blond hair. She had on a pinkish-blue jump suit under a blue cape-like shawl. She wore pink gloves and wore a pair of blue boots. A flail with two stars attached to the chains of the weapon was hanging from her waist. The man groaned.

"Who are you suppose to be?" He asked.

"I am the epitome of sunshine and lollypops!" The cute girl squealed with delight, a huge grin appearing on her face.

"Oh, great." The guy muttered under his breath. "Do you want something, or are you just here to bug me?"

"I am looking for someone." The girl said.

"Who, your parents?" The guy said hopefully.

"No… I am looking for the light dragon warrior Ryu." The girl said.

The man's eyes widened. "You… know Ryu?" He asked.

"More than that." The girl said. "I know where he is… but I need some help getting there…."

"What is your name kid…" The man said suspiciously.

"Elehayym." The girl said. "Well, that's one translation of it… but everyone mostly calls me Elly."

"Hmm…" The man said.

"Who are you anyways?" Elly asked.

"My name?" The guy pointed to himself. He let out a laugh. "Well, what do you think that it is?"

Elly smirked. "You are Jaren."

_(Laurante: Inn/Pub)_

"Ummm…" Nina mumbled. "Are you sure this is such a good idea?" She fumbled with a bow in her hair as she and Dustin walked through the double wooden doors.

The pub that they had entered was inviting. Several of the patrons were sitting around wooden tables, deeply engaged in conversation. Dustin grinned and raised a fist into the air. He laughed as he and Nina made their way over to the counter. Nina and Dustin pulled up some stools and sat down.

"Barkeep!" Dustin laughed, raising his hand and waving over the bartender. The barkeep, a burly looking man in his late forties walked over.

"Yeah, wha'cha want?" He asked in a gruff voice.

"I want at your finest and strongest drink in the house!" Dustin laughed.

"What about the lady?" The barkeep asked.

"I just want some tea please." Nina said in a polite voice.

Several of the patrons across the room laughed. Another burly and rather hairy man leaped up, shaking the pub somewhat. He picked up a double-bladed axe and hefted it over his shoulder. He then stomped over to where Dustin and Nina were seated at the counter and adjusted the axe to the other shoulder. He was dressed in a white shirt with an animal skin vest on over it. He wore dark brown pants and leather steel-toed boots. His long, wild brown hair was pulled back into a spiky ponytail. He pulled at his long beard once, then laughed again.

Dustin gave the man a confused look. "What is so funny, fellow warrior?"

The man grunted. "You don't go into a pub and order tea! I don't care if you are a woman or not!" He pointed to Nina as he said this. "A woman should know how to hold her ale! And for another thing, I am not your 'fellow warrior!'"

"Then, what shall I address you as?" Dustin said.

"I am Paul Babaderu!" The man yelled. "Are you trying to insult me?"

"Why would I want to do that?" Dustin said, rising to his feet. "But, I cannot allow you to insult my lady friend."

"What are you going to do about it then?" Paul laughed. "You are nothing but a skinny little man! You have no weapon! How can you ever hope to face me in battle and win!" Paul laughed again.

"Dustin…" Nina whispered. "We should just leave… I don't think it would be a good idea to rouse suspicions…"

"Nonsense, Princess!" Dustin laughed. "I _am _the Galaxy Operative Director after all! There is nothing that I cannot face!" Dustin raised his fist into the air. "And besides, this brute has insulted you! I cannot let that fact go! You have been dishonored and I must avenge you!"

Everyone in the pub stared at Dustin as he continued to rave about avenging Nina's honor. Paul snorted and grabbed Dustin's raised fist. "You are either incredibly brave, or incredibly stupid. No one insults ME and gets away with it." Paul raised Dustin into the air. He threw Dustin against a table. Dustin yelled as he crashed into the table, several pub patrons jumping out of the way to keep from being hit by Dustin.

Dustin jumped into the air. He pushed his blond hair out of his face and smirked. Nina and Paul stared at him in disbelief. Had he just gotten up without being hurt? Dustin quickly jumped to his feet and lunged at Paul with a renewed determination to take him down. Dustin balled up his fist and proceeded to strike at Paul when Paul brought his battle-axe up to block Dustin's blow. Dustin raised his hand to deflect the blow just as the battle-axe was brought down. Instead of being hit with the deadly weapon, it was somehow deflected. Dustin looked up to see a silver-hilt sword glowing ominously in the hand that he had tried to deflect the blow with.

Paul's jaw dropped as everyone else in the pub stared at Dustin with a mix of awe and confusion. Nina just smirked. After all, Dustin was a god, so something like this was not any trouble. Paul dropped his battle-axe and fell to his knees.

"Great warrior…" Paul said. "You fight with valor and honor. You have defeated me in armed combat with your mighty blade. My fate is in your hands."

Dustin grinned as he lowered his sword. "Come, fellow warrior!" Dustin extended his arm to Paul. "Let us celebrate this victory and new friendship! Everyone, drinks are on me!"

"You are truly a great warrior!" Paul said as he accepted Dustin's hand and stood up. "HAIL! A fellow warrior!"

"All hail the Galaxy Operative Director!" The patrons of the pub cried, raising their mugs into the air to toast Dustin.

Dustin grinned and walked back over to Nina, who was beaming at him. "That was great!" Nina grinned. "You truly are a great warrior!"

Dustin grinned. "Of course! I have slain many of a monster, fighting with my sword of power!" Dustin sat down on the stool and laid his sword on the counter. "Tell me, where should we look now to find your missing friend?"

"Hmm… I'm not sure…" Nina said. "Maybe the capital of the Katobario Empire."

"The emperor may know something then?" Dustin asked.

"Maybe…" Nina sighed. "But then again, he hasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed."

"That dumb?" Dustin asked, taking a drink from his mug.

"No, that naïve. It's a long story…" Nina sighed.

"Hmm… maybe we should go there later then." Dustin said. "I detect an ominous presence there… something of a foreboding power…"

"Like what?" Nina asked. "What could be that fearful?"

"I… do not know… we shall go then, and if there be a monster, we shall slay it!" Dustin cheered, raising his mug into the air. The patrons of the pub followed suit and gave another victory cheer for Dustin.

Nina just rolled her eyes.

_(Rolante: harbor)_

A lone figure stood at the end of the docks. He was a tan, muscular bald man. He wore a gray, sleeveless shirt under a red cloak and brown baggy pants and leather, steel-toed boots. The wind picked up and billowed the cloak out. He stared out at the ocean for a few moments before he closed his eyes. The man didn't even move when another figure walked up from behind.

"Why have you summoned me?" The other figure asked. The figure was a young man in his late twenties with messy brown hair. He crossed his arms and glared at the other man. "What do you want?"

"Guardian." The first man said. The brown haired man's eyes widened in shock. The first man turned around to face the said Guardian.

"You know what I am, then." Brown head said. "Then you know who I am…"

"Zeke Kale… Garland… Guardian…" The man said. "I shall cut to the chase. Do you know of what has been happening since the defeat of Dracen?"

"Yes." Brown head/Zeke said. "The one calling herself the Master of Ceremonies is looking for something."

"More like a someone. Do you know who?"

Zeke's eyes narrowed. "Who are you exactly, anyway? I will not answer any more questions until you tell me."

"I am simply known as Vin." The man said. "You might actually call me an Ancient Summoner… But that is beside the point."

"Vin, huh?" Zeke mused. "But that does not answer my question as to why you have summoned me here…"

"I have simply asked you to meet me here because I wanted to know if you knew anything about the current situation."

"I have only been told by the Goddess Deis that there is a great evil here. Greater than Taijkos, greater than Dracen. Is this the one who calls itself the Master of Ceremonies?"

"Yes." Vin said. "Deis is right. This 'thing' makes Taijkos and Dracen seem like rank amateurs."

"That bad, huh?" Zeke mused.

"Yes. And it only gets worse."

"How so? Nothing could be worse than what we had to go through…" Zeke smirked slightly.

"Ever hear of Lord Zeifer?" Vin said.

"Lord… Zeifer…?" Zeke muttered. "The Goddess mentioned something by that name… millennia ago… what….?"

"The thing that Taijkos sealed away… the 'dark force' if you will. The Master of Ceremonies wants to unseal that force…" Vin said.

"What?" Zeke actually looked shocked. "How long until the Master of Ceremonies successes?"

"Until the Harvest Moon… which is in a month." Vin said. "Not long."

"…" Zeke crossed his arms and looked down in thought.

"Which is why I have summoned you here, Guardian. I have need of you to do something for me."

"What would that be?" Zeke muttered.

"There is someone who is in need of your protection. I want you to find them and protect them from the Master of Ceremonies." Vin smirked.

"Who would that be?" Zeke growled in frustration. "This makes no sense! Zeke's eyes flashed red.

"Watch your temper, Guardian." Vin smirked. "You will know them when you see them." Vin made a gesture with his right hand. A runic circle appeared underneath his feet and flashed once. Vin vanished in a flash of light.

Zeke let out a frustrated growl and sat down on the dock. He closed his eyes and began to mediate.

_(Laurante castle: throne room)_

Kane sighed as he opened the white and gold, wide double doors. For some odd reason, Aersia was not able to attend the meeting that Jonothan had summoned them for. The odd thing was, Aersia was a married to duty type of soldier. Whatever reason she had for missing, it must have been major.

So, earlier that morning, Kane had managed to drag out his dress uniform, a white, long sleeved, buttoned shirt that the hem of the shirt fell down to about his knees and black slacks and black dress shoes. He wore a short sword attached to his belt at his side. The sword was mainly ceremonial; he never drew this blade in battle.

Kane groaned as he walked through the doors. The throne room was large in design. Red and blue banners with a lion's crest adorned the walls. The bright rays of the afternoon sun shown through the stain-glass windows. Electric lights in the shape of torches aligned the walls along side of the windows. Several guards in the military uniforms that the Katobario Imperial Guard was so famous for were stationed all around the room. The traditional red carpet with gold embroidery stitched into led up to the throne. The throne itself was a gold color with a red lining in the seating. A young man, with light short brown hair, dressed in a red cap and blue robes sat on the throne. A gold circlet was on his head, marking him as the emperor. A woman with jet-black hair, dressed in a formal pink and white gown stood to the right of the throne.

_So that's where Aersia was… _Kane thought to himself. _Still getting use to her role as Jonothan's advisor. Figures…_

"Ah, Lt. Commander Lokhart." The emperor smiled. Kane knelt down on one knee and bowed.

"You have summoned me, your majesty?" Kane asked, lifting his head to meet Jonothan's.

Jonothan's face took on a look of halfway between seriousness and amusement. "Well, yes…"

Aersia stiffled a laugh. Kane's eyes narrowed. Something wasn't quite right here…

"KANE!" Kane actually jumped up in shock. _That voice!_ _I KNOW that voice! _Kane's mind seemed to scream, but he could not quite place the shriek that called his name.

"Kane?" Kane stood up at the sound of a softer-spoken feminine voice. Kane closed his eyes, praying to whatever greater power that seemed to be listening, praying that this was not karma from the time he pulled that obnoxious prank on his sisters, turned around to be staring face to face with three very painfully familiar faces.

A young girl with dark brown hair and glasses, dressed in a purple, sleeveless dress that fell to her ankles and buttoned up the front, stood right in front of Kane. She grinned as she quickly ran full speed over to the dark dragon and tackled him, sending them both to the ground with the girl on top of Kane.

Behind the two was Rena, wearing a blue, sleeveless top that had white ruffles along the front. There was a long, blue petal-like strip of cloth that ran down from the outfit on the right side. She wore dark blue puffy gloves that were tied together with black ribbons at her elbows and wrists. She wore a black belt around her black mini-skirt and knee-high brown leather boots. And behind Rena was Manna, simply wearing a black, laced up tube-top and a pair of black jeans and a pair of black, steel-toed boots. A black choker was on her neck with a gold ankh attached to it. Her staff was strapped to her back. Both the girls smirked as Kane and the girl just laid there.

Jonothan coughed, trying to get the attention of the crew. Kane's face developed a deep blush as he and the girl stood up. Kane coughed then asked the question that was plaguing his mind. "Cat?"

Cat grinned and nodded. "Yeah! It's me! Can you believe it?"

"What are you doing here… crap! What are Manna and Rena doing back?" Kane asked, looking at the two girls.

"Nice to see you too, Kane…" Rena muttered.

"Nani?" Kane asked. "Err… what's going on here?"

Jonothan actually smirked and gestured to Manna. "I'll let Lady Manna tell you what you need to know."

"_This _is what the important meeting is about?" Kane asked, flabbergasted.

Aersia nodded. Kane shrugged his shoulders and turned to Manna. "Well?"

"Well, Rena and I went home, but a friend of Rena's named Dustin entered the warp portal and was transported to Anglous Castle. Cat followed suit and the portal closed. Rena and I went back after the two to bring them back…home. Anyway, we were able to find Cat, but Dustin was no where to be found. When we finally found them, Dustin was on the Great Bird with Nina, flying over to this direction… so we came here, hoping to find them."

"What does this have to do with me?" Kane asked.

"Cat would not shut up until we came to see you. So, we asked Emperor Jonothan to summon you here." Rena explained.

"Makes sense…" Kane said as Cat latched onto his arm.

"I finally get to see you in the real!" Cat smiled happily. "This is great!"

"Hmm…" Kane mused, remembering what the shadow had said about protecting Cat from the Master of Ceremonies. "Your highness?"

"Yes, Lokhart?" Jonothan asked.

"I request permission to aid Manna and the others in their search for their missing friend. After all, the Katobario Empire owes Manna and Rena much with their aid in stopping Dracen from taking over this kingdom." Kane said, purposely omitting the part where Lex had tried to kill him.

Jonothan gave Kane a malevolent grin. "Of course. Your request is granted. Lokhart, just remember, the girl's younger than you." He gestured for Cat, who was still latched onto Kane's arm. Cat giggled as Kane's face went a violent red.

So the emperor actually had a sense of humor on him… granted it was a bit warped. A bit warped? Try severally warped. The man had issues.

"Err… of course, your majesty. But whatever are you talking about?" Kane fought the urge to go dragon and sit on the man right here and there.

"Hmm? Oh, nothing." Jonothan smirked.

Kane turned to Manna, his left eye twitching. "Did you have this planned out?" He muttered through gritted teeth.

"Hmm… whatever do you mean?" Manna laughed. "I can't help it if your emperor has a warped sense of humor."

"At any rate." Rena said. "We should probably start to search the city for the two."

Cat nodded in agreement. She grinned as she and the other's walked out of the throne room. "Kane?"

Kane seemed to visibly relax once they were outside the throne room. "Yeah?"

"Have you heard anything about the Master of Ceremonies?" Cat asked, gaining the attention of both Rena and Manna.

"Master of Ceremonies?" Rena asked.

"Solona." Manna muttered under her breath.

"Uh… I have definitely missed something, haven't I?" Rena sighed in annoyance.

She was answered with three really annoyed looks. "That bad?"

"Like you wouldn't believe…" Kane sighed.

TO BE CONTINUED


	3. Chapter 3

Standard disclaimer: Nyo? No own. Nyo… pouts

AN: Sigh Ya know? School can really suck sometimes. Right now, I not only have three tests looming over my head in Introduction to Business, Business Communications and Correspondence, but Small Business Record Keeping. :P Heh, on top of that, I have a project in Small Business, too. Take a wild guess on what that is. I get to do the accounting cycle for a mock company for not only one month, but two as well.

Oh, and there's more! Next semester, I get to take Probabilities and Statistics. Annoyed sigh Three days a week even. At nine o'clock in the morning to ten. Not that bad, only an hour… but still. I hate math! I'm just glad that Dragon is basically a genius in anything related to math. In case you didn't know, Dragon is my tutor and the reason I passed Finite Math :) LOL He could make a lot of money if he charged me for each time I called him up on the phone for help… Anyway… Heh, does this rant have a point? Not really. Shall we just get onto the fic?

Reese: You actually have ran out of witty and stupid things to say? mock shock

Me: I have to deal with normal, every day life, too. Ya know?

Reese: Translation: You have ran out of witty and stupid things to say.

Me: Go bug the crap out of someone else…

Reese: Nope. You wanted me back, so here I am. Annoyance factor and all.

Me: Joy… oh, joy… oh, bliss…

Reese: Onto the story LOL 

AN2: Once again, Rei is not a dragon.

Cat-star4 helped me come up with the name for Kagumi, BTW. Thanks Cat:)

"_A desperate struggle. The strongest takes it all. The battle rages on until the weakest finally fall. A vision fills her heart and gives her strength that's pure and true.  
And when it seems that all is lost, she knows what she must do."_

_---"She's Got the Power," _Sailor Moon R

Warriors of the Master

of Ceremonies

_(Outside Laurante)_

A gentle breeze blew, moving the tall blades of grass in the meadows. A great forest, full of life, surrounded the meadow itself. With the sun shining brightly over head, the scene was full of peace and tranquility…

"LALALALALALALALA!"

If not for a hyperactive, blonde-haired, spazball seven-year-old cheering and jumping up and down in the process, spoiling the mood. She twirled around and threw her flail up into the air repeatedly and caught it. "I am the best! Oh, yeah! I killed the monster! Go me!"

"You killed an eye-goo…" A man said, standing right next to the child. He pushed his brown hair back out of his face and groaned. He looked up to the sky and sighed. "Why me? What did I do to deserve this type of punishment?"

The girl turned to the man and laughed. "Ah, come _on!_" She pouted. "You act as if I am the harbinger of chaos and destruction." She placed her small hands on her hips.

"Arg… I have more pressing matters to attend to other than baby-sit you." The guy said. He crossed his arms. "And besides… how exactly do you know me anyways?" The little girl chose to ignore the annoying meenie. Really, did he know how rude he was?

"Gaki (1)!" The man muttered under his breath.

"I am not a brat!" The kid screamed. The man raised an eyebrow.

"So… Elly… you can speak Draconic?" The man smirked.

Elly paled slightly. "Er…"

The man smirked. "Save it. You better tell me where Ryu is right now; or else… what do you know that I do not, anyways? You're just a kid…"

"And you are a wanderer who's occupation is thievery…" Elly smiled. "Or should I call you a blood-thirsty titan?" The man looked a bit uneasy at that mention.

"Who… WHAT are you!" The man finally cried.

"I am Elly. I told you this already." She smirked. "Should I call you Jaren, or what? You never DID tell me how to address you?"

"Rei…" He muttered. "Call me Rei."

"'Spirit', huh?" Elly laughed. "Not an original name, ya know?"

Rei sighed. "Kid, where is Ryu?"

Elly smiled slightly. "Not too sure, actually."

Rei face-palmed. This was going to be a long trip. First he has minding his own business and the next thing he knows, he's babysitting a Strawberry Shortcake reject. Just who the crap was this kid anyway? She claimed she knew where Ryu was, but she "couldn't remember" as to where his exact location was. Rei did find out one important thing, though… she could speak Draconic… But then again, so could he… which kinda defeated the theory about her maybe being Brood.

Who knows? He sure didn't want to know. This kid needed some Ritalin. Badly. She was just too hyper and cheerful for his taste. Too bad there wasn't a dark, gothic, brooding chick around. He needed someone mopey around to counteract the kid's cheery disposition. But, she was the first person in over three months who actually had a clue as to where Ryu might be.

So, in other words, if he wanted to find Ryu… he needed to put up with the brat.

"Hey, gaki." Rei said.

"I am not a brat!" Elly cried, huge tears running down her cheeks.

"I don't care. Gaki, if you are going to hang around, there are some rules you are going to have to follow. First, quit the whiney waterworks. Trust me, they don't work." Elly stopped crying. "Second, you are going to have to tell me who you are."

"Well…" Elly looked thoughtful for a second. "You may not believe me."

"I have lived over 300,000 years. Nothing surprises me." Rei smirked.

"Well…" Elly gestured Rei to bend down and then whispered something into his ear. By the time she finished, Rei was greatly pale and his eyes wide.

"Oh…" Rei blushed. "I see… I think you may be right… um…" Rei coughed. "Um… what day-- what month-what year did THAT happen!" Rei yelled, trying to regain his composure… which he seemed to be failing at miserably.

"Uh… how should -I- know?" Elly grinned.

"This IS you we are talking about… unless there is another Reider present." Rei muttered, still uneasy.

"What makes you think that…?" Elly started, but the look in Rei's eyes cut her off. She turned about to see what he was staring at. She then noticed that he pulled out his daggers. A cloaked figure stepped out from the shadowed and laughed slightly. Said figured walked around the two for a moment, then stopped. The figure turned around and looked at Rei.

"Are you the titan?" A feminine voice asked.

"Who wants to know?" The thief asked, eyes narrowing.

"No one of importance…" The woman stated. "Just I, the first warrior of the Master of Ceremonies, the Elemental Mage Luna Zandati." The woman pulled back the hood to reveal her identity. She had a beautiful face with purple eyes. Her jet-black hair was pulled back into a single bun with thin braids falling down from it. Long, layered bangs framed her face.

"Well… you work for Solona then?" Rei asked. "Interesting…."

"That's the Master of Ceremonies to you, nave!" Luna cried, raising her arm and pointing a neatly manicured finger at Rei's direction. She muttered something inaudible, then a thin beam of light shot from her finger and right at Rei.

"Ko Anno SAI!" Elly chanted, placing her hands into a prayer-like position. Gold light formed around her hands as she brought her index fingers together. A thin beam of light shot from her extended fingers and countered Luna's attack.

"What?" Luna asked. "Who are you?" She looked down at Elly.

"Believe me when I say that I would like to know that, too. But, for now… SOUL REND!" Rei screamed as twin beams of light formed from his hands and shot out, crisscrossing around Luna. She screamed, but raised her hands, dismissing the attack.

"Clever, thief. But you can not harm me while the Master of Ceremonies is alive. Only someone on a higher level can hurt me, and you are not at your peak of power. Though, if you wished, you could probably ascend and crush me, but then you'd risk the child's life, too. Hahaha… you are cornered." Luna smirked.

"Good grief, you are long winded." Rei sighed. "Elly, let's go." Rei turned to leave, Elly, not too sure on what to do, followed suit.

"You DARE turn your back on me!" Luna seethed. "Fine them." She raised her hands into the air and started chanting.

Rei and Elly turned around and saw that the sky started to darken. Rei's eyes narrowed as he turned to Elly. "Gaki, run. Run now, run fast." He said in a calm voice, though there seemed to be a bit of fear underlining it.

"Run? Why?" Elly asked, but it was too late. Luna finished her chant and thousands of lightning bolts descended from the sky.

Rei yelled, and grabbed Elly, shielding her from the bolts with his body, just as he was pummeled by the lightning. Rei fell to the ground, Elly underneath him, still getting struck by the lightning. Each bolt caused his body to burn as if it was on fire. Rei screamed out in pain as the onslaught continued.

Luna smirked as she casually strolled up to where Rei was laying on the ground, withering in pain. "Never turn your back on an opponent." Luna said as she made a gesture with her hand. The lightning stopped. She made another gesture as Rei was slowly lifted off the ground. Rei lost his grip on Elly and she fell to the ground. She scrambled away from where Luna was standing.

"You are a fool to think that you could ever defeat me. Only a Furyian can stop me. And you are no Furyian." She got right up next to Rei and placed her hand on his chest. She could feel Rei's heart beat at an erratic pace. "Funny. You are scared. You know that I have the upper hand." Rei's eyes swiveled to look at Luna in the eyes. She smirked. "How much electricity do you think it takes to electrocute someone?"

Elly drew her flail. Maybe she could distract that woman long enough for Rei to regain his bearings and recover and attack. She stepped forward, but a sharp pain shot through her head. Luna turned to the little girl. "Don't even think about it, child. I will kill you with just one gesture of my hand if you try to attack." Elly cried out, as the pain became unbearable. She screamed and collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

She then turned her attention back to Rei. "Now, you will know the wraith of the Warriors of the Master of Ceremonies." Fine lines of electricity formed on the hand that was against Rei's chest. She then let loose an electric shock. Rei screamed. Luna only smiled as the electricity shot through Rei, causing his body to convulse. Her smile widened as she felt something burst within Rei's chest. Rei's head arched back as he let out a deafening howl of pain. Rei's entire body stiffened as the electricity continued to race through him. His golden eyes became hollow, devoid of all life.

"_Rei, you jerk."_

Rei's head jerked slightly.

"_You better not die on me!"_

Luna's smiled faded as she saw Rei's eyes flash red. Rei's hand reached up and grabbed hold of the arm that Luna was currently shocking Rei with. His nails sharpened as he clawed into Luna's arm, drawing blood.

"_Let go, now…" _Rei growled, his voice taking on a demonic sound to it.

Luna's eyes widened as she released Rei. Rei's body fell to the ground in a crumbled heap. "Y---you…!" She cried. Rei got up, never taking his eyes off of Luna. Ebon, draconic wings burst from his back as his hands turned into claws. His eyes flared with an unearthly light.

"_Tell your master that it will take more than simple pallor tricks to take me down." _Rei growled, barring fangs at the woman.

Luna stepped back, and made a hand gesture. A violet light flared up around her. When it died down, Luna was no where to be seen. Rei arched his head back and let loose a deafening howl. He collapsed to his knees and grabbed his chest. He could feel his heart beat at an erratic pace. He screamed again and collapsed to the ground. It felt like every fiber of his being was on fire.

"_Rei!"_

Rei's vision swam as he looked up. Through the haze he saw a gloved hand being placed over his chest. _"Don't move." _A soft voice whispered. Rei saw a white light form from the hand. The light seemed to cool his aching body. Rei visibly relaxed as he let the light wash over him. Vision still swimming, he looked up to see a young woman's concern face looking down at him.

"Rennie…?" Rei murmured.

"Who's Rennie?" The high-pitched voice of a child interrupted Rei's thoughts. Rei's vision cleared and Rena's face was replaced with Elly's. "What happened? Where's that scary lady?" Elly asked as the light died down.

"Y--you're a healer?" Rei asked, slightly dazed.

"Yeah, but you never answered my questions."

"The scary lady's gone." Rei muttered, exhaling loudly.

"And once again, who's Rennie?" Elly asked again as Rei sat up. His wings and claws were gone.

"Rennie's… a friend of mine that saved my life." Rei muttered, looking down at the ground. _Rena, was that you who called my name?_

"Thank you for saving me." Elly said shyly.

"Uh, you're welcome…" Rei sighed. Elly was blushing slightly. _Huh? Oh, no. Don't tell me… _Rei sighed again. This was indeed going to be a long journey.

_(Laurante)_

"Kanashimi ga ima… SE-RA- SUMAIRU! Kiseki wo okosu no… SE-RA- UINGU! Dare datte. Kagayaku hoshi wo motsu! MAKENAI! Acrapa e… SE-RA- E-RU! ZETTAI! tsukamaeru! SE-RA- SUTA-kono chikai! Todoke ginga made! (2)" Rena sang (more like screamed) at the top of her lungs as she, Manna, Cat, and Kane made their way down the busy streets of Laurante. 

Rena walked ahead of the others, screeching out an unfamiliar song. Cat laughed and ran to catch up with Rena, trying to sing along with the words. Manna and Kane inched back and tried to pretend like they were not with the two girls that were singing.

"What are they singing?" Kane muttered to Manna. "It sounds Draconic."

"Nah, it's… Japanese." Manna muttered, saying the last word with a hint of disgust to it. Manna looked up at the sky and shielded her eyes from the afternoon rays of the sun. Rays of light reflected off of the windows of the tall skyscrapers. Rows and rows of buildings lined the paved streets.

The two sighed again as Rena hit a high note, causing several people to stare at her in annoyance. Rena stuck out her tongue and stalked off. Cat laughed and walked over to Manna and Kane. "You two don't look too happy. What's up?" Cat asked.

"Just what kind of song was that?" Kane asked.

"Eh? Oh, um…. I think it was from…"

"Does it really matter?" Manna asked, already on the verge of screaming.

"Party-pooper…" Cat muttered. She stuck her tongue out at Manna and ran off to catch up with Rena.

Kane smirked. "No wonder those two are such good friends. They act a lot a like."

"I try really hard not to think about it." Manna crossed her arms. "Anyway, why were you so determined to come with us? I mean, we are just going to hunt down Dustin, then go home."

"One word: Solona." Kane said.

"Solona… Yeah, you mentioned her when we first met up. What do you know about her?"

"All I know is that she wants to do something that will destroy the world…" Kane tapped his foot. "Tell me something, why do people want to destroy the world? What are they going to do afterwards? Tap-dance on the rubble that is left?"

"Dunno. But stopping them gives us something to do." Manna smirked.

"Us?" Kane asked.

"Ah, Vin and I. We get bored easy… well, sorta." Manna smirked.

"Vin? Who's that?" Kane asked.

"My… partner." Manna smirked again.

"Partner? I bet." Kane laughed. He was rewarded with an elbow to the gut. "Ah, HA!" Kane laughed again.

"You are pushing it Kane." Manna smirked. "Be glad that I don't go medieval on your sorry ass."

"Oh, like you could ever take me!" Kane mock-threatened.

"Wanna push your luck?" Manna cocked an eyebrow. "It's not nice to tempt the hand of fate, ya know."

"But… hm." Kane sighed. He crossed his arms. "Do dragon transformations count?"

"Only if I can summon." Manna smirked.

"Eh, summon what?"

"Must you ask?"

"No. Never mind. There's no telling what that crazy mind of yours can come up with." Kane laughed.

"What's so funny?" Cat asked, coming up from behind the two. She grinned and walked over and stood beside Kane.

"Eh, nothing." Kane blushed slightly.

Rena walked over and got right up into Kane's face. "Rhee? You are blushing? Ah, does this have something to do with…"

Kane held up his hand. "Shut up Rena."

"No." Cat smirked "Please continue with this interesting conversation. We are dying to hear it."

"Guys!" Kane mushroom sighed, slumping his shoulders in defeat.

"Just admit it now, Kane. It would make things easier in the long run. Trust me. I don't want any sappy confessions of love right in the middle of the last boss fight." Rena said.

"Admit what!" Kane growled, turning away.

"Yeah!" Cat laughed, facing Kane. "Admit it! Just get it over with already!"

"I… what did I ever do to you guys to deserve this type of torture!" Kane wailed. "This isn't fair!"

"Neither was that time that you put grape jam into your older sister's dresser." Manna smirked, examining her fingernails.

"Eh?" Kane tried to look innocent. "What the crap are you talking about Manna?" He laughed and grabbed hold of Manna's arm. He dragged her a few feet away from the others. In a low voice, he whispered, "How did you know about _that_!"

Manna just smiled. "I know a lot of things, Kane."

Kane sighed. "If that's the case, then why didn't you know where Ryu was?"

"I… think I know where he is… but, well…" Manna sighed.

"Solona?" Kane asked.

"If she indeed has him, then it is really going to be hard tracking him down. That's why I couldn't say anything… not yet. Especially not to Nina. I mean, just look. Nina's running around with a known psycho looking for Ryu. Rena knows about people like Solona, but has never fought them. She knows how dangerous this is. If Nina knew, then she'd go off and try to fight Solona herself. And she would die."

"Just how powerful is this woman?" Kane asked.

"At least as strong as me." Manna said.

"How strong are you?" Kane gaped.

"Strong enough." Manna said.

"Why are you telling me about this, anyways?" Kane said.

"Because, Solona has directly spoken to you. She knows who you are and will probably come after you. It might be a good idea to stay alert. Besides, would you rather not know anything and then have that woman come after you and you die against her?"

"No." Kane said.

"Oh, before I forget. FYI: remember Lex? She was originally what Solona is."

Kane paled. "That strong?"

"Just for your information." Manna said. "Anyway, enough of this for now. We better just focus on find Dustin and Nina before trying to take on Solona. If I am not mistaken, I think Solona's warriors have already been dispatched to find us. Nina and Dustin don't know anything about what's going on. The faster we find them, the better."

"Agreed." Kane said, then glanced over at Cat. "I think Solona's after Cat, too. I won't let her even get anywhere near Cat."

"Good." Manna said. "Oh, and by the way. Will you just admit that you like the girl and get that over with before Rena and I do it for you? It will save us a lot of trouble in the long run."

"Manna!" Kane choked, turning red.

"What?" Manna asked innocently.

_(Near the Underground entrance)_

_Ah, the breeze feels nice. _Mina said. She sat in a field of many different colored flowers in her astral form. Her pink and purple dress was flared out around her as her wings were at rest around her body. A few feet away was the Great Bird, nesting. The fifteen-foot avian flapped her wings as Mina stood up and walked over to where Dustin and Nina were sitting.

"I had no idea that you could do that Mina." Dustin grinned.

_Well, it is rather hard to keep up this form for a long period of time. It takes a lot of energy to do so. That is why I don't do it more often. _Mina smiled as she sat down next to Dustin.

"So, tell me," Dustin said, lying on his back with his arms resting under his head like a pillow. "Just where are we located at anyways?"

"This is the area that is near the Underground Entrance." Nina said. She sat beside Dustin with her legs crossed. She fiddled with her rapier while Dustin closed his eyes and grinned.

"Ah, an entire nation of underground people?" Dustin asked. "How to they fair? Are they friend of foe?"

"Well, it more depends on who you talk to." Nina sighed. "As a princess, the only people from Shelder that I have interacted with are the Regents. Well, more like the High Regent Miyuki Shindensetsu. She is the leader of all of Shelder. She's rather nice, actually. Some of the other Regents are a pain, though. Like, there is this one Regent named Hao Dachyu. He is rather… weird. All he did during the gathering of the nations was try to hit on me. Marian and Albert Lokhart aren't that bad, but they are rather old-fashion. Daichi Zentrati is just an ass. I won't go into details about the other government officials."

"That bad?" Dustin asked as he opened one eye to look at Nina.

"No, just… frustrating. They do not accept change rather well. They are ruled under something called a D-Ratio. That determines your latent abilities and such. It's rather confusing. I actually slept during the part of history class that talked about the D-Ratios."

"Ah, much like I did." Dustin mused to himself.

"Ah, but you have infinite wisdom, do you not?" Nina asked.

Ah, but of course." Dustin flashed Nina a wide grin. "I am really smart."

_More like really weird… _Mina thought to herself. _He's a god? I am having trouble believing it. But, then again, who am I to question the actions of one who is above one such as I?_

Mina was pulled out of her musings by a soft cry. She quickly stood up and darted around to see if she could find the one who made the cry. She glanced back around and saw that Nina and Dustin didn't even react. _Maybe, they can't hear it? _

Nina looked up at Mina. "What's wrong?" She asked. Nina looked over at Dustin, who had jumped up and drew his sword.

"Ah, and there! An enemy approaches!" Dustin crouched down into a battle stance as his eyes darted the landscape.

Several men in gray, metallic armor walked out of the entrance, followed by a young woman with short, spikey, silver hair, who was dressed in black leather from head to toe. Two of the men in front of the girl were hauling a young girl with short blonde hair, dressed in a white, sleeveless dress. She had a gold bracelet on her right arm and left leg. There was a strange runic symbol on her forehead. The strange thing about this girl was that she had a pair of red, appendage-like wings protruding from her back.

The girl made crying noises as she vainly struggled to get away. Dustin jumped out of his stance and ran over to where the people were and pointed his sword out at them. "Halt! Nay, I say! What be you doing with that fair child?"

The woman with silver hair rolled her eyes. "You can't be serious." She turned around to the men and made a gesture with her left hand. "I'll be along shortly. Deliver the cargo at once."

"Yes ma'am." One of the men said as he and his cohorts walked on past Dustin and the woman.

"WIND STRIKE!" Nina cried as she raised her hands. Green blades of energy shot from her hands and halted the men in mid-step. "You are going nowhere!"

"Do you even know who you are dealing with?" Silver-hair asked.

"Nay, but I will not stand by as an innocent child is carried off and taken to who knows where! Low and behold! I am the Galaxy Operative Director! The G-O-D! I will not stand by and let you take that child!" Dustin shouted as he readied his sword.

"You… are a god?" Silver-hair asked. "No matter! I will deal with you then! I am Payne Maru-daichi (3)! I am the Sword Princess and warrior of the Master of Ceremonies! Behold my power and DESPAIR!" Payne drew a long, broad sword with a skull on the hilt of the blade.

"Sword Princess?" Dustin snickered. "You're joking right?"

"You DARE mock me!" Payne shrieked. "How DARE YOU! You will pay!" And with that little dialog out of the way, Payne raised her sword and charged at Dustin.

"Heehee!" Dustin laughed. "Ah!" He commented and jumped out of the way of Payne's blade as she brought it forward. Dustin brought his sword down and blocked against Payne's quick blows. Payne jumped back and jumped back into a battle stance.

"Nay! You are a good opponent! But! I am on a mission of the most urgency!" Dustin stated. "I cannot waste my precious time dealing with one such as you!" He jumped forward and rammed his sword forward. Payne blocked with hers and back-flipped into the air. She landed on the ground and charged at Dustin again.

"You must know, that you cannot win!" Payne said. "The Master of Ceremonies will triumph in the end!"

"I will not let such an evil mistress rule!" Dustin yelled. A silver and blue light encircled his blade and lanced out at Payne.

Payne screamed as the mysterious force hit her. She was hurled back into the air and landed with a harsh "thud." Payne swore as she staggered to her feet. "The power of the Furyian? What matter of being are you!"

"I am the Galaxy Operative Director! The G-O-D! I will not let the likes of you stop me! Sphere of Silence!" Dustin shouted a simple first level AD&D attack. A blue light engulfed Payne and shocked her.

"Impressive!" Payne growled. "My henchmen will put a stop to… you…?" Payne glanced around to see all of the men that were with her were on the ground, withering in pain. Various cuts and bruises were evident through their cracked armor. "How…?" Payne stammered.

"Me!" Nina said, her hands glowing with a light green energy. "You want to be next?" Nina said as she took a step forward.

"Infidel!" Payne growled, stepping forward. "I will make you PAY!"

_Payne!_

Payne's head snapped up to the call of her voice. This voice she knew all too well. "Yes, Master of Ceremonies?"

_Report back at once._

"But, I have yet to complete my mission!"

_Let them be, for now._

"Yes, Master of Ceremonies!" Payne said.

"Who's she talking to?" Dustin asked.

"No clue. Maybe she's a bit off in the head?" Nina giggled.

"You are lucky this time!" Payne said. "But mark my words, G-O-D! I will be back for my revenge!" Payne shouted as a green light engulfed her. When it died down, she was gone.

"That… was strange." Nina said.

"No doubt." Dustin said. "Huh?"

"What? Oh!" Nina said as she saw Dustin run towards where the men were lying. Nina ran over to where Dustin was standing. He was staring at the young girl that the men had been carrying. He knelt down and gently picked her up.

The girl's dark brown eyes slowly opened. She looked dazed for a moment, then let out a surprise yelp when she saw Dustin.

"Nay, young one. You are in safe hands. The Princess and I have defeated the foul ones who wish to hurt you."

The girl calmed down and nodded. She smiled as she hugged Dustin. He grinned and placed her on the ground. "Where do you hail from?" The girl gave Dustin a blank stare. "Ah, I see. Where are you from." The girl pointed to the ground.

"You're from Shelder?" Nina asked.

The girl looked down at the ground, a depressed look on her face. Dustin placed his hand on her shoulder, engulfing it. "Nay! Look not sad, young one! You are amongst friends." The girl smiled. "I am Dustin Table and this here, my traveling companion, is Nina…"

"Dawnstar." Nina smiled. "What's your name?"

The girl opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Dustin and Nina looked at her curiously. "Ah, I see. You cannot speak. Yes?" Dustin asked. The girl nodded. "Then, what shall you be known as?"

The girl picked up a stick and started to write odd symbols on the ground. Nina took a moment to read them, then smiled. "She wrote the symbols for "Kagu" and "Mi." She is saying that her name is Kagumi. Crapo, Kagumi."

The girl smiled. Dustin grinned as he sheathed his sword. "Then, young Kagumi. Come, quest with us! I will protect you from the villainous ones that wish to hurt you!"

Kagumi grinned and took hold of Dustin's hand. The three walked back over to Mina, who was standing next to the Great Bird. "Where shall we go next?" Nina said.

"How about the capital city, to speak with the emperor?" Dustin stated.

"Alright, then!" Nina cheered. "Mina, ready?"

Mina smirked. _Laurante it is then!_

_(Reis)_

Payne appeared in a flash of green light. The dark, dreary stonewalls of the temple did not do much to improve her mood. She stretched out her hand and a dark brown cloak appeared in it. She swung it around her body and fastened the latch. She stormed through the temple's main hall into the sanctuary.

Several other cloaked figures all stood around the room, looking slightly amused. One figure stepped forward and smirked.

"So, the Sword Princess has failed to deliver the experiment?" A light, feminine voice laughed.

"Luna." Payne muttered. "Are you here to mock me?"

The one called Luna smirked. "No, I am not. I had a bit of a run in of my own. A titan with the power of chaos. I fought with the one called Jaren. It did not go too well."

"And yet, you fought two simple humans Payne." A deep baritone voice mocked. "Is the Sword Princess losing her tough?"

"Orion." Payne muttered. "No, I was called to retreat by the Master of Ceremonies."

"Why would the Master of Ceremonies call for a retreat? Were they that powerful?" Orion asked.

"No, they were nothing more than two stupid humans." Payne muttered.

"I do believe that you are wrong, Sword Princess." Solona said as she materialized right in front of the three. "The girl is an ally to the Destined Child. The boy… wields the power of the Furyian."

"The power of the Furyian?" Luna gasped. "Impossible! No human could ever wield that kind of power!"

"And yet, two humans wield the power of the ancients. They wield my power. And for that, they will pay!" Solona grumbled.

"Master of Ceremonies!" Payne cried. "Let I, the Sword Princess Payne Maru-dachi, deal with them! I will cut them down with the power of my Skull Blade!"

"No, Master of Ceremonies!" Luna said, stepping in front of Payne. "Let I, the Elemental Mage Luna Zandati, make them pay with the power of the elements!"

"No need to send amateurs, Master of Ceremonies." Orion said. "Allow me to deal with them!"

"Let one who know them deal with them." Solona said. She made a gesture with the hand and a mirror-like pool appeared at her feet. In the mirror was Kane and Cat. "The Rune Maiden and her knight are looking for us, as well as the White Dragon and the Ancient Summoner. We must deal with them first, then go after the Galaxy Operative Director, the Princess Nina, and Experiment 3173."

Solona turned to the table that was behind her. "Awaken, sleeping warrior. So that you can serve I, the Master of Ceremonies." The figure that was lying on the table let out a slight groan. Solona's eyes narrowed when the man didn't rise.

"You are there, aren't you!" Solona walked over to the body and placed her hand on person's forehead. "It is useless to resist me!"

The man's eyes opened. His eyes were glazed over and hollow looking, but the gaze he gave Solona caused her to shiver. "Na… kazen (4)…?" The man muttered.

"Na… kazen?" Solona asked. "I am the Master of Ceremonies! You WILL serve me!" A dark light shot from her hand and into the man's body. He screamed as his body spasm.

"No bato, saya ainoto AI! (5)" The man yelled, his eyes flashing gold.

"Quit fighting me!" Solona shouted, electrocuting the man. He screamed again as his body spasm once, then laid still. "You will serve me." Solona muttered. She then said something inaudible and placed her hand on the claw mark on the man's forehead. The man's eyes opened again. He sat up and looked over at Solona. "Ni atkao ayid mayias (6), Master no Ceremonies?" The man said, his eyes flashing red.

"You are to kill the Rune Maiden and her knight, as well as the Ancient Summoner and the White Dragon." Solona said.

The man got off the table and knelt down in front of Solona. "Auki no eitata (7)."

"Excellent." Solona smiled.

TO BE CONTINUED? 

(1) Japanese: "brat"

(2) Japanese: "Sadness now... Sailor Smile...brings a miracle. Sailor Wing. Everyone carries a shining star. I won't give up! To tomorrow, a sailor yell! Absolutely! I will catch it! The sailor star! Let this vow sound through the whole galaxy."

(3) Anyone get the joke? Read _xxxHolic _volume one in order to understand LOL

(4) "Who are you?"

(5) "I wont, I will not give in to you!"

(6) "What is your will?"

(7) "As you wish."


	4. Chapter 4

Standard disclaimer: I do not own _Breath of Fire_. Capcom does. I do own my characters and Dragon owns Dustin, Cat-Star4 owns Cat, and Mana Sphere owns Vin and Manna. Dragon and I own "Dustin's Shorts" though, I'd rather not LOL). I do not own any jokes or references to any other game, manga, animé, or the sort.

I ran out of cute and witty things to say ;; sniffsniff

No, wait! Never mind! LOL

AN: The fourth chapter in SRD? Wow, this must be some kind of record! Anyway, heh, a new chapter for this new epic. Even though it's not originally planned out to span more than ten to eleven chapters, things may change. See, DL too, was only supposed to span ten to eleven chapters. Just ask Dragon! He'll be more than happy to get the chance to rant about how I talked about DL here, there, and everywhere. Sam-I-Am even got sick and tired of hearing it!

Reese: Ready to begin?

Me: Yeah. Oh, and here's a shout out to my favorite online buddies, Cat-Star4 and Shadow Rave… even though he has somewhat dropped off the face of the Earth. All well, he has a buoy he can use to get back to shore with, right? Heh, well if he does not, he can borrow mine! Here Shadow! tosses him a buoy

Hey, Cat and Shadow! Can't wait to read the next chapters in your stories:)

On to the fanfic :)

Eyes on Me

_(Unknown)_

_Are you there? _

_Can you hear me?_

_It's coming!_

_Get away now!_

_Forget what you know!_

_Let go of the past!_

_If you don't, you will die!_

_It's the only way!_

_You have to let go, if you want to live._

_You can't wait anymore._

_You and everything you hold dear is in danger of being destroyed._

_Asking you to stay, is asking you to die._

_I will not have that._

"What?" Nina muttered. She jerked around, but saw only darkness. The voice's words kept echoing throughout the endless abyss of shadows. It was as if the entire area was alive with shadow. Nina shook her head and looked around once more, confused as to where she actually was…

_"Princess Nina."_

"Who…?" Nina asked. A bright sphere of light hovered a few feet away from where Nina stood. The sphere changed and took on the form of a woman with red hair, dressed in a golden short dress. Wings protruded from her back.

"Kyra?" Nina asked.

_"Listen to me. You must turn back now. You are in great danger." _Kyra said.

"How are you here?" Nina asked. "Where exactly IS here? And what do you mean, 'great danger?'" Nina crossed her arms in annoyance.

_"You are in the place of dreams. Imagination and reality bend here and meld together. There is a great evil approaching. Do you not sense it? You and those you travel with are in danger. Did you not hear him warning you?"_

"Him?" Nina asked. "Do you mean Ryu?" Nina gasped. "Wait, are you telling me that Ryu's here too!" Nina franticly looked around. "Ryu!"

_"Your Ryu is not here, Princess Nina." _Kyra said. _"You must stop this quest before it results in your demise. Do you not understand?"_

_Stop, before it's too late._

"I…I can't." Nina whispered. She looked at Kyra. "What would you do if you were me? If someone you loved with all your heart was gone, and you had the chance to see them again, what would you do!" Nina yelled.

_"I let him go." _Kyra said. _"The one I loved… we could never be."_

"Who…?" Nina asked.

_"It matters not who. What matters is that you are here and Ryu is not. You are alive and Ryu… is gone. You won't have the chance to see him again."_

_I don't believe that…_

"I don't believe that!" Nina shouted. "Ryu is still out there, somewhere! I can _feel it! I know it! _I will find him again… only if it's just to see him only one more time. I can't go on in life… if I can't see him. I need closure. If he's really dead, then… well…" Nina trailed off. "But! If he's still alive, I have to see him at least once more!"

_"I…see." _Kyra said. _"Even if it meant you possibly dying in the process?"_

"…yes." Nina said.

_"You have made your decision. There was once someone dear to me… and I was not able to save him. It resulted in my demise. Do not allow yourself to suffer the same fate as I. Because of what happened, I couldn't move on… and he is forever doomed to wander the worlds, not being able to ever know peace."_

"Because… you couldn't save that person?" Nina asked.

_"No. I could not save him from himself. He wanders by choice. He will never know peace, because he knows only shadow. Maybe the 'light' can save him, where I could not."_

"Who… is it that you are talking about?" Nina asked.

_"An… old ally." _Kyra muttered. _"You have a great task ahead of you. Trust not what you see, but what you feel. Things will not be as they appear. Allies might be enemies, and enemies might be allies. Remember that." _And with that, Kyra vanished.

Nina stared at where Kyra had stood just moments before. She shook her head and allowed herself to let the conversation sink in. Who did Kyra mean. A wanderer by choice?

"Rei?" Nina asked. The area suddenly went white and Nina shielded her eyes. She quickly closed her eyes and wished that the light would just fade and she'd wake up from this freaking nightmare. A high-pitched noise cut through the quiet area, causing Nina to grab her head in pain. She screamed and fell to her knees in pain.

"MAKE IT STOP!" Nina shouted out loud, as if that would dispel the intense pain that was running through her mind and body.

_"You cannot stop me. You are just a lowly mortal with no powers. Only one with the power of the Furyian can stop me!_ _And you are no Furyian!"_

Nina looked up and saw a masked figure in a black cloak with a hood over their head. The figure walked up to Nina and pointed their finger at her. _"I am the darkness that fills your nightmares. I am the doubt you feel in your soul. I am the harbinger of chaos. You will not stop me, winged child. You can make sure of that!"_

"Who are you!" Nina cried. "Why are you doing this!"

_"I am the seed of chaos and destruction. You are a huge nuisance to my plans and me. I will finish you off here and now!" _The cloaked figure raised their hand, dark lightning forming around their outstretched palm. _"Now, DIE!"_

Black lightning raced from the figure's palm and straight at Nina at blinding speed. Nina crossed her arms in front of her face, trying to block the energy attack. She knew she didn't stand a chance against an attack like that, and her body hurt to much for her to move.

_Lotakai _(1)The voice that had called to Nina at the beginning of this… dream… shouted. Nina looked up to see a "shadow" right in front of her with what appeared to be some kind of silver-hilt sword in "his" hand. _Ironreaver! _The blade flashed gold as he slashed at the lightning. He cut right through the attack, causing it to disperse before it had a chance to hit its target: Nina.

_"AJOATI _(2)_!" _The cloaked figure growled, saying the strange word as if it were some sort of profanity. The figure glared at the shadow. _"You are not the one in control here. Remember that." _And on that note, the cloaked figure vanished.

Nina stared at the shadow for a moment. She still could not will her body to move. The shadow knelt down right beside Nina and places his hand on the side of her cheek. A familiar sense of warmth and familiarity washed over Nina. She felt feeling return to her body.

"Who…?" Nina asked. "How?"

Nina thought she saw the shadow smile. _Don't give up hope, all right. What Kyra may have said might have been true, but keep in mind that came from a woman that had her heart broken over 1,300 years ago and has lived with that pain ever since. You are not Kyra. You may not suffer that same fate._

"What's really going on here?" Nina asked, tears beginning to form in her eyes. "Who are you?"

_In order for… you to be… all right… I can't tell you. But know that is not the last of that "thing" you will see. If you continue to look for Ryu, it will just get more… difficult. Are you still willing to take those risks?_

"I want to see Ryu again." Nina said, squaring her shoulders back. "I will not stop until that has either happened, or…"

_I understand. _The shadow said. _In order to fight against that "thing's" minions, you will need help. You already have an ally that has the power of the Furyian, but you will need more than that. _ The shadow touched Nina's dragon tear. A golden light formed in the shadow's hand and shot right into the crystal. _Use this power to cut through objects and attacks that cannot be cut through. It's called "Ironreaver."_

"But, you used a sword, didn't you?" Nina asked.

The shadow laughed. _You have a rapier, do you not?_

Nina paused. "Good point. But, what is the power of the Furyian anyway?"

_An unfathomable power that was wielded by an ancient and powerful race of people eons ago. Well, that's what I've been told anyway._

"What's going to happen now?" Nina asked.

_That depends on what road you plan to take. I don't know the future, or what will happen. But I do know this: if you call me, I will help you. Use my power to stop the Master of Ceremonies before she is able to complete her plans. _

"Master of Ceremonies?" Nina asked. The area lit up again and Nina could feel herself being pulled from unconsciousness. "Wait! What are you talking about?" Nina could barely make out what the shadow shouted back at her.

_Iekosai _(3)

_(Reis)_

"Now is the time to see if my little dragon will be able to defeat them for us." Solona smirked. She reclined back in the golden throne she sat in and laughed. She watched in her pool-mirror as a cloaked, hooded figure made their way to Laurante.

"Do you honestly think this will work?" A pinked-haired girl asked, standing beside the throne.

"Maybe. I just want to test my dragon's strength, Anjira." Solona said.

"Maybe so, but remember, the Rune maiden and her knight are there, as well as the white kaiser and the summoner." Anjira said.

"I am not worried about any other than the rune maiden and… Manna." Solona said, growling. "Two who wield the power of the Furyian…"

"Humans that wield the power of the Furyian?" Anjira asked. "Is that possible? I didn't think it was…"

"Hm." Solona muttered to herself.

Two humans, with the power of the ancients sleeping inside of them. The Blade Master was already awake and seemed completely oblivious to what he actually was, but the other… The Rune Maiden was traveling around with the Ancient Summoner, and now her partner was also on Asparia. It wouldn't be long before the Rune Maiden figured out her true powers and then things would really get tricky.

So, she would just have to make sure that the Rune Maiden did not awaken to her powers. Knight, or no Knight, he could not protect her forever. The summoner would pose a challenge, but what of the white kaiser? That was a power she had never seen before. Just what WAS that girl anyway? She had her powers long before she realized she was a Dragon Clanner. The summoner and the white kaiser both know and are friends with the rune maiden…

Someone was stacking the odds against her… but who? Who would do that? WHO would do that? Who could and would have that much power?

_(Forest outside Laurante)_

"Everyone got their supplies?" Kane sighed.

"Check!" Cat grinned.

Cat, Kane, Manna, and Rena stood outside the city gate of Laurante. The surrounding area was completely covered with trees. The trees ran so close together that it was almost like trekking through a sea of trees.

Cat had once again decided to change outfits. She said something about not wanting to travel in a dress across a part of the land that was a part of a forest. So, she was now dressed in a sleeveless, dark purple shirt with a pair of blue jean shorts on. She was still wearing the brown boots from earlier.

Rena, in the same vein that Cat had, decided to change too. She was now dressed in a red leotard, similar to the one she had worn on her last trip to Asparia. She had on a long red shirt that was held up by a blue piece of cloth that was acting as a belt. She kept her brown leather boot, though. Rena had the staff that Yume had given her attached to the cloth. She also had several pouches attached to the belt on the leotard.

"Is everyone ready?" Manna asked, leaning on her staff. "Any last words before we set off?" She looked at Rena. "Last chance to use an indoor bathroom."

Rena muttered something under her breath, then smiled sweetly to Manna. "No, I think everyone is ready to go."

Cat giggled at the inside joke as Kane gave everyone a strange look. "What did I miss?" The three girls laughed and started to walk further into the woods. "What!" Kane growled and ran to catch up with the three. "Tell me!"

Rena smirked and shook her head. "It's one of those things where you had to be there, Kane."

"No kidding!" Manna said.

"Remember that trip we took to Scotland?" Cat asked. "Rena kept asking us were we there yet!"

"I remember…" Rena muttered.

"Yeah, and the main reason for that was because she had to pee like every five seconds?" Manna laughed.

"This isn't all that interesting… Let's change the subject!" Rena said hopefully.

"No, this is VERY interesting." Kane grinned evilly.

"Kuso (4)…" Rena muttered. "I couldn't help it if I drunk a gallon of tea before we let that hotel!" Rena sighed. "I was really thirsty."

"Green tea ish good." Cat smiled.

"Sake is better." Manna grinned.

Kane sighed. "That's what I'm gonna need for this trip in order to be able to deal with you three!" Cat and Rena glared at him, while Manna just smirked all-knowingly. "Two hyperactive fangirls and a chick that knows EVERY FREAKING THING!"

"And the funny thing is," Rena laughed. "Manna does."

"Not everything." Manna said mirthfully. "Just 99.9 of everything."

"Close enough…" Kane muttered. "Still though, just HOW did you know about that incident that one time…?"

"Huh?" Rena said. She glanced straight ahead and saw a hooded figure walking towards them.

"Crapo?" Kane said, stepping in front of Rena and Cat. Manna walked right up beside Kane, her staff at the ready. Kane placed he hand in the hilt of his sword.

The figure said nothing as he continued to walk towards them. He reached behind his hand and drew an all to painfully familiar sword. The sword's hilt was golden with a pair of twin dragon-serpents interlacing up the hilt and ending at the bottom of where the blade began. The blade itself was silver and had rune markings that ran the length of the blade. The figure held the sword in front of him and assumed a battle stance.

Kane took a step back. "One guess on who that actually is…"

"Oh… no…" Rena said, covering her hand with her mouth. She picked up her staff and extended it to its full length. She stepped forward cautiously. "Who are you?"

The man said nothing as he crouched down and then charged at the four at lightning speed. Manna quickly changed her staff into a sword and blocked the man's blow with her sword. The man jumped back a few feet, unfazed.

"Why do you attack us?" Manna demanded, a dark purple aura springing up around her. "What is the meaning of this?"

"What the…?" Kane said. "Never seen that trick before."

Rena glared at the man and walked toward him, much to the protest of Cat and Kane. She walked over to where Manna was standing, never taking her eyes off the man. She closed her eyes as a pair of purple and red draconic wings burst from the vents on her shoulder blades. She opened her eyes and took a deep breath.

"You are here to fight us now." Rena said. Not a question, a statement.

The man said nothing, instead he took off his hood to reveal a young man with green eyes and blue hair. Rena and the man stared at each other for a few moments, never taking their eyes off each other.

Finally, the man broke the silence. "The Master of Ceremonies has ordered for your deaths."

"Solona?" Kane asked. "Why…?"

"The power of the Furyian must not awaken to the one who is unaware." The man continued. "I will make sure the carrier of this power will not live to challenge the Master of Ceremonies."

"So, you will fight us now?" Manna said, pointing her blade at the man. "You will regret ever challenging us." A runic circle appeared beneath Manna's feet. She raised her sword in the air, it reverting back into a staff, as she began to chant.

"IRONREAVER!" The man shouted, slamming the hilt of his sword right into Manna's gut. Manna glared at the man with a mix of rage and amazement before the full force of the hit reeled into her and sent her flying into the air. Manna let loose a string of colorful curses as she hit against a tree.

"We… have a problem…" Kane said.

The man started to walk over to Cat and Kane. Kane drew his sword with his left hand. He held out his right arm in front of Cat. He glared at the man as the man stopped right in front of the two. "You will not harm Cat." Kane said, placing both hands on the hilt of his sword and pointing right at the man.

"The dark kaiser." The man said. "I am not afraid of you. IRONREAVER!" The man shouted, sending the blade right into Kane. Kane screamed as he was hit with the full force of the blast. Kane screamed as he was thrown through air a couple of feet.

Cat glared at the man and got into a defensive stance. "Who are you! Why are you attacking us!"

The man stared at Cat. "The Rune Maiden."

Cat stared back at the man, trying not to shake. She took a step back as he took a step towards her. "The Master of Ceremonies has ordered for your death. Now die! IRONREAVER!"

"TELEPORT!" Cat's mouth fell open as she felt herself move to another location. She was now standing where Rena had stood…

"RENA!" Cat screamed.

Rena had teleported Cat away from the blast. Now Rena was standing right in the way of the attack. Rena braced herself as the blast charged her full force. Rena held her hands right in front of her as a sliver light began to lace up around her arms. The man's eyes widen slightly as Rena was hit with the blast at full force. The energy collided with the silver light ribbons and went right around and through Rena. Rena's face strained, but she didn't move from her position.

The man growled and charged Rena again. He jumped up and brought his sword done on Rena's head. Rena held up her hands and caught the sword with her hands. She struggled with the man to try to get hold of the sword. His eyes flashed as he lifted her up in the air and hurled her against a tree. Rena screamed and landed with a sickening thud.

"RENA! NO!" Cat screamed again. She tried to run towards Rena but felt someone hold her back. She turned around and saw a really sore Kane holding her arms. "KANE! Let me go! He's going after her again!"

"She… will be fine." Manna muttered, limping over to where Cat and Kane stood, using her staff as a cane.

The man walked over to Rena, a confused look painted on his face. "Who…?" The man stuttered.

"Rena." Rena muttered, looked at the confused man. "You know who I am… Ryu."

Cat's jaw dropped. "THAT'S RYU!" She pointed to the confused dragon. "But… but why is HE attacking US if HE is suppose to be your ALLY!"

"He must be under a spell." Kane said. "His eyes are glazed over. He must recognized Rena."

"Thanks for stating the freaking obvious." Manna muttered. "RYU! Do you remember us!"

Ryu said nothing as he knelt down next to Rena. She looked at Ryu and stared right at him. "Who… are you?" Ryu asked Rena.

"We already had this discussion, remember?" Rena said.

"Re…" Ryu stuttered. Suddenly, Ryu's head pulsed with pain. He screamed and dropped Rena, grabbing his head. Ryu doubled over in pain has he held his head.

Rena swore as she quickly said a spell to heal herself. She quickly sat up and placed her arms around Ryu's head. "Please, try to remember us… remember who you are. You are not a warrior of the Master of Ceremonies. You are our friend. You are my brother. You have to remember! Wake up!"

Ryu said nothing as his body continued to pulse with an unknown pain. His eyes suddenly flashed red and he knocked Rena away. He grabbed his sword back up and stood up. He glared at Cat and charged her.

"IRONREAVER!" Ryu screamed, blasting Kane, Manna, and Rena away again. Cat screamed as she was knocked up against a tree. Ryu ran at her full force and brought his sword down on her head.

Cat raised her hands in an ill attempt to block the blade. Lavender light formed in her hand and took on the form of a gold-hilted sword with a silver blade. The blade blocked Ryu's attack and blasted him back a few feet. Ryu swore as he charged Cat again.

Ryu brought his sword down on Cat's head…

"_Cast forth the power of light and protect all from harm. _SHIED!" Rena screamed at the top of her lungs.

A sliver-azure light flickered above Cat and solidified. Ryu's sword slammed into the dome.

"_To seek what cannot be seen. To hear what cannot be heard. To make all things not known be known…Time, transcend the mortal plane. Bring forth the power of the Ancients to serve thy holy judgement!" _Manna screamed.

Ryu was frozen in place by an unknown force. A look of stark terror was painted across his face.

"…" _Forgiv_e_ me. _Manna paused. "FINAL JUDGEMENT!"

"Manna!" Rena yelled, confused and surprise that Manna would be using _that _attack against Ryu.

_I have seen enough_. An ethereal figure of a woman with long blue hair, dressed in a gold dress, with a mask covering her upper face appeared right in front of Ryu as a surge of energy raced towards Ryu. _Disperse! _The woman said she held up her hand and averted the attack. The woman then turned to Ryu and touched his forehead.

"YOU!" Manna screamed.

Ryu screamed as he doubled over his pain again, every muscle in his body pulsing with pain. The figure made a gesture with her hand. Ryu's body jerked up and stood right beside the woman. The power continued to pulse through Ryu, making his wither in agony. The woman smiled as she turned to Ryu.

_Nicely done. You make me proud. _

"HOLY LIGHTENING!" Rena screamed, sending a stream of white lightning straight through the woman. "PRISM STORM!"

The attacks passed effortlessly through the woman. She smiled as she moved Ryu's body in front of her. The storm of glass shredded right through Ryu's body, making him scream even louder.

"STOP THIS NOW!" Manna demanded.

The woman turned to Manna, a look of disgust on her face. _Summoner… Manna… I never thought I'd see YOU here again…after what happened LAST time. _

"Bitch!" Manna growled. "Stop this at ONCE!"

_You cannot hurt me while I am in this form. You and I both know this. You can only hurt me in my true form. Know this well, I know who the Rune Maiden is and I also know who the Blade Master is. I will hunt them both down, and I will kill them. _

The woman smirked as she saw the enraged look on Manna's face. She saw the angry looks on Kane and Rena's faces and the confused and bewildered look on Cat's. Ryu looked at Rena's eyes then closed his own. He opened them again to reveal that they were no longer glazed over and were a molten gold.

Ryu started to jerk in the air, trying to get out of the woman's hold. The woman's face contorted in anger and amazement. A blood-red light appeared on Ryu's forehead and took on the form of a claw-shaped mark. The woman growled as she slammed her transparent hand right into Ryu's chest. She sent a shock through Ryu's body, causing the young dragon to spasm once, then go limp in the air. Ryu's eyes glazed over and rolled up in his head.

_I will see you again, warrior. _The woman said.

"_Ilakia noa na dae,_" Manna quickly started to chant, moving her hands in the air in a complex formation. "_Tie not aotn nai'tn neit. Andne tjkeo nadoek. Tei and andow eiene enadie t'ake leake! _(5)_"_

_What is _that _about? _The woman laughed, but was suddenly cut off by the sound of an echoing heart beat. _NO!_

Everyone turned around to see the force of the heartbeat was from Ryu himself. Ryu's body started to convulse and glow brightly. The light enveloped him and when it died down, in place of Ryu was a gold-scaled dragon. The kaiser's eyes widen in fear and quickly gained altitude. A light once again formed around the dragon. This time, however, the light took on the form of a small sphere and shot far into the distance, the dragon nowhere to be seen.

_NO! This cannot BE! _The woman screamed. _SUMMONER! Feel my WRAITH!_ The woman charged at Manna, but she simply held her hand up in the air and said, "Akuryo Taisan (6)."

The woman screamed as she vanished. Manna smirked and crossed her arms. "True, I can't hurt you unless you are in your true form, but nothing's stopping me from getting rid of your sorry ass."

"What… just happened…?" Kane said slowly.

"RYU!" Rena screamed. "CRAP IT!" Rena fell to her knees and slammed her fists on the ground. "This isn't happening!" She looked back up at Manna and Kane. "What do you two know? Tell me! Where's Ryu!"

"That was the Master of Ceremonies." Manna said. "I don't exactly know why she is here. All I know is that she is looking for Cat and Dustin. As far as where Ryu is, I told him to go someplace safe. Not even I know where he is right now."

"Why them?" Rena muttered, standing up. "Why Dustin and Cat?"

"She thinks they wield the power of the Furyian." Manna said. "That is a really old and ancient power… she is right. They wield that power."

"Why?" Cat asked, looking down at the sword that was still in her hands.

"That sword is called the Oathkeeper. It can only be wield by the Rune Maiden. She is one of two warriors that is destined to fight along side of the Destined Child and his allies against the forces of darkness."

"I don't understand." Cat said. "Are you saying that I have powers?"

"Yes." Manna said. "A power that Solona… the Master of Ceremonies rightfully fears. With that power, you are almost on equal terms of power with her and her minions."

"The power of the Furyian…" Rena said. "Hey! Isn't that was that person said back on Earth?"

"Yeah." Manna said. "The ones we fought on Earth, are here on Asparia. They are one in the same."

"But, why now!" Kane snapped. "Why are they here now? And what could they possibly want with Ryu?"

"The Kaiser Dragon… Ryu… is the second most powerful dragon, next to Ladon. And Ladon is the Dragon God. They need the power of a god for some reason." Manna said. "They have tried this before."

"When!" Kane growled in frustration.

"During the War of the Gods." Manna said. "When the gods on Asparia fought for control of rulership. The war that led to Taijkos sealing away an incredible and dangerous force. The leader of the beings that would rather twist everything by his design rather than live peacefully with all others."

"So, this thing… is actually the darkness that Taijkos sealed away?" Kane asked. "But, I thought she sealed away a dark force."

"She did." Manna said. "But, like Seirei, this force also had a human form. I don't know much about what happened because I was not apart of that battle."

"But, you know something." Rena said.

"I had friends that fought in that war." Manna explained. "I had friends that died in that war. Think about it. A war that pits gods against gods. Nothing good ever comes out of something like that. You guys already know this, but when Taijkos sealed the dark force away in her body, that lead to the 'thing' taking hold of her. The destruction her reaped was nothing compared to the destruction that was caused by the gods. And that's around the time that Myria found Taijkos and banished her…"

"And that's what sparked the Destined Cycles." Kane said. "But… what exactly are you saying?"

"She is saying that Solona wants to revive the dark force that Taijkos sealed within her. And they need the power of a god… or something really close to it… in order to accomplish their goal." Rena said.

"Is that why Solona waited until Taijkos and Dracen were dead before making her attack?" Kane asked.

"Yes." Manna said. "Now that Cat has the Oathkeeper, she is in much more danger than before." Manna turned to Cat. "Do you still want to be here, now that you know the danger that will follow you until either you are dead or they are?"

"I…" Cat looked down.

"Cat." Cat looked up to see Kane's hand on her shoulder. "I won't let anything happen to you. Don't worry, you'll be fine."

"Thanks Kane." Cat said.

"You'll need to learn to use that sword." Rena said. She, Cat, and Manna turned to Kane. Kane looked somewhat surprised.

"Why are you looking at me…?" Kane moaned as it dawned on him. "No. Nuh, uh! Absolutely NOT! No way!"

"Pwease?" Cat and Rena plead, attacking Kane with the dreaded "puppy-dog eye" stare. "You are the only one who can teach me to use a sword!" Cat whimpered.

"M-Manna uses a sword!" Kane said.

"No, I use a staff. Big difference." Manna smirked.

"B-but it can change into a sword!" Kane wailed.

"But Kane!" Manna had a hard time to keep from laughing. "You are the Rune Maiden's knight! You are the one who must protect her from all harm! It is your swore duty to…"

"ENOUGH!" Kane growled. "FINE!" He sighed in frustration. "Let's just get to the next town and find Nina and Dustin before you three cause me to go bald!" Kane grumbled as he marched off, away from the three girls laughing like mad.

"Hey, Cat?" Rena said. "I think he likes you."

"Really?" Cat smirked. "He actually acts rather mad."

"Nah." Manna waved her hand nonchalantly. "He's just playing hard to get. You have to annoy him a lot more before he will open up to you."

"Works for me!" Cat laughed.

TO BE CONTINUED

"Bastard!"

"Crap!"

"I am with you."

Japanese: "Bastard."

"Here me now, oh powers of the ancients. Guide this lost one to a safe place. One who is lost, you know must go to the place that you call safe."

Japanese: "Evil spirit, be gone."


	5. Chapter 5

Standard disclaimer: I do not own Breath of Fire, nor do I make any money off of it. What? Were you expecting something clever and witty?

AN: Finals are over and I am officially on Winter Break… a very well deserved, long time coming break. I managed to pass my Small Bus… ah, heck… Accounting class with a "B" so I am a very happy little woman right now. Let's just say that Airess plus any kind of math equals Airess going insane from all the evil little equations and such.

Meh, I'm just trying to make filler here because I've got a bit of a writer's block. I hate writer's block. I can take this story several different directions right now and I'm not really sure which direction to take. All well. I'll flip a coin and take it from there. Nah, I'm not pulling this out my butt; I sorta have an outline. At least you don't have to deal with two really annoying characters traveling around in a submarine and stuff. Long story and would rather not go into it. Also, the above was never my idea. It was Crystal's. Deal. Oh, and one more thing. Arcahan told me something interesting. He said that the name "Tarina" actually means "a story" in Finnish (I think). Just an interesting thought. :)

Moment of Truth 

_(Laurante Castle)_

Some days were just better than others were. There were days when you felt like everything were right with the world, which all problems could be handled properly or plans would run smoothly. Other days, you had times where all of your instincts were screaming at you to merely pull the covers back up over your head and stay away from the outside world. And then there were the times when you just knew you should have taken the time for that extra cup of coffee.

Today was one of _those_ days.

Emperor Jonothan Katobario, Ruler of the Imperial City of Laurante and emperor of the Western Continent sighed in disbelief. He currently stood in front of a gold-rimmed mirror in his private quarters, ready to scream. As if the last six months had not been bad enough, now he had _this _to deal with?

The room where Jonothan currently stood in was large and grand, seeing as that this was the king's chamber. The walls of the room were the color of the sky, as was the ceiling. The floor was polished wood with a red and blue carpet in the center of the room. A large black leather couch was along the left wall and a large wooden; a curio dresser was along the right, the one that he was currently in front of. A door that led to the bathroom was on the same wall, as was a closet and a large bed.

A door was on the far side that led out to a balcony, overlooking the garden. The same garden that the former queen and his mother had spent much of her time taking care of the many flowers there before her death.

So, one might wonder, just what _was _the young emperor so stressed out about? One, every simple reason. Earlier that morning, he had received word that the royals from Anglous were coming for a visit. Now, one would think that this would be good for diplomatic relations and such. Well, not in his case apparently.

In the message, apparently the princess was missing. Again. For the third time. In six months. This was getting old… very fast.

Jonothan was about to scream. Apparently, Nina decided to up and leave her home, _again_, without telling her parents. The last time she had ran away, she had come through Laurante with Kane and some people.

He remembered how strict his parents had been before they had died, so it wasn't like he didn't understand how it was like to be caged up in the castle with nothing to do all day. But, unlike Nina, he also knew he had a responsibility to govern an entire nation… even though he has proven in the past that he's not exactly the best of leaders. The "Dracen Incident" had proven that.

But this, _this _was ridiculous! Were Joshua and Marina Anglous so irresponsible that they could not keep track of their own daughter? He may be not the best of leaders, but at least _he_ knewwhere his family members and friends are. And now, the annoying royals were on their way to Laurante to yell at _him_ because _their daughter _was missing.

He sighed as he latched his cape onto his back and walked away from the dresser and to the door that led to the hallway. He was going to head back down to the kitchen for that second cup of coffee. He had been around Lokhart for far too long. He was beginning to get that sense of not all is well in the world. Or at least in Laurante. And seeing as that the royals seemed to be more annoying than the Regents were, he wasn't about to take any chances…

_(Rhalpha region)_

_Your fate is in your hands…_

"AIYA!" A blonde-haired woman screamed, bringing down a six-foot halberd on an unfortunate Gonghead, a small blue spiky ball with a bird's beak. The young woman was dressed in a purple and gold bikini top and a really short gold mini-skirt and loose white and blue ankle boots. She wore a blue bandana tied around her head. She marched forward and continued to destroy whatever unfortunate animal or monster decided to cross her path.

Ranger Sora Megami of the Rhalpha Region was currently on standard patrol. Every day for the past three months, she had been patrolling the woods outside the large agricultural town of Rhalpha. Rhalpha was also where the Ranger's Guild was located. The same guild that was ran by her mother, Zeno Megami. Just WHY Sora was out depopulating the woods was unknown. After three weeks of a desk job, she just had to get back out and fight.

Apparently, fighting was becoming more commonplace for her than she thought. Something wasn't right in the world, but she couldn't quite figure out what it was. After the party disbanded, she lost track of Zeke and Rei. Manna seemed to drop off the face of the planet. The Tao-Kokarai seemed to vanish; not even Mina could find it again. This was getting bad. It seemed like all her sources had disappeared. She even tried (against her better judgment) to consult Deis on the matter. Deis had nothing to say of the matter.

Sora swung her halberd against the nearest tree, the impact causing the tree to shatter on contact. Sora stopped in mid-step. Something was in the air. She turned towards the more dense part of the forest and saw a shadow move. Her eyes narrowed as she crouched down and held her halberd to her side. The shadow moved quickly, darting from left to right. Sora was having trouble keeping up with the shadow.

Sora closed her eyes. She jumped back up and held her halberd high above her head with both hands. She quickly, quietly chanted something under her breath, then opened her eyes. She pointed her halberd in the direction of the shadow and screamed, "HEAVENS CATARACT!"

A torrent of white and silver wind and fire flew out from her halberd and right at the shadow. The shadow growled in anger and quickly dodged the attack. Before Sora even had time to react, a cloaked figure grabbed hold of Sora's neck and lifted her a few feet off the ground. Sora choked as she dropped her halberd.

"So, you are the infamous Sora Megami?" The figure laughed slightly in a deep voice.

"What the crap…?" Sora gasped between chokes.

The man laughed as he effortlessly swung Sora in the air and left go. She slammed into the trunk of a tree, causing it to shatter on impact. Sora grabbed her neck and coughed, trying to get air back into her lungs.

"Your aim leaves much to be desired." The man said, stepping closer to Sora.

Sora glared up at the cloaked man. "What… what the crap is going on! Who are you!"

"I am slightly disappointed that you do not remember me, Myria." The man said. He made a gesture with his hand that caused Sora's body to rise into the air. He made another gesture and she was forced over to where the man stood. His face was inches away from hers.

"Shall we get reacquainted?" The man said while pulling back his hood. He had the tan face of a man in his mid-twenties. He had short, spiked black hair and glasses on his face. "Allow me to reintroduce myself, seeing as that you clearly do not remember me. I am Orion Sabre."

Sora's eyes widen in shock and fear. She couldn't quite place the name and face, but something about that name and this man was causing her to become increasingly afraid. And that was one emotion she hated to deal with. But she could do nothing in the current situation she was in.

A ball of light formed in Orion's hand and took on the form of an energy blade, not unlike the ones Rei had a tendency to use. He grinned sadistically and stalked right over to Sora. He swung his energy blade down right on Sora's left shoulder, causing her to bite her lip. She refused to let out a scream. Orion's eyes narrowed. He then made another swipe with his blade, this time hitting her in the torso. Sora tried vainly to get out of the hold that Orion had her in, but it seems she couldn't move, let alone attack.

Orion smirked as he watched Sora struggle to get free. He swiped with his sword again and this time hit her right arm, leaving a large, bloody gash running down her arm. Sora bit her lip again, still refusing to cry out. He slashed at her neck, then at her other arm, but Sora still refused to scream. Finally, Orion got fed up with the stubborn woman and unleashed a frenzy of slashes on Sora's body. Sora grunted but still refused to scream. Orion screamed in anger and annoyance and jabbed Sora in the side. Sora let out a small whimper, but nothing more.

"I see that you are one stubborn woman… as you were so long ago. My name invokes fear in you, as it should. I am known as the Slayer, I am a warrior of the Master of Ceremonies." He eyed Sora carefully. "If only you still had your true powers. In this form, you are of no use to us." He made another gesture with his hand, causing Sora to slam into a tree. "Allow me to dispose of you here and now."

"NO!" Sora screamed as Orion made another gesture with his hand and caused a torrent of wind and energy to surge at Sora.

_Ahi _(1)A voice said. Orion looked around, trying to find the source of the voice. The shadow of a person appeared right in front of Sora and held up its hand. The wind energy reflected off the shadow's hand and was sent hurdling back at Orion.

Orion swore as he held out his hand and made another gesture. The wind dispersed. He growled as he approached Sora and the shadow. "Who are you suppose to be?" Orion said icily.

_You should know, Slayer. _ The shadow muttered darkly.

"Who…?" Sora asked. With Orion's concentration distracted, he let Sora fall to the ground. Sora looked up weakly at this new "person", not quite sure what to make of it. "What's going on…?"

The shadow knelt down next to Sora. _I'm here to help you. You need to get back up and get away from here!_

"She won't be going anywhere, other than with me." Orion said, making another gesture with his hand. Sora rose to the air again, weakly jerking around trying to get free.

_Sora! _The shadow cried. Orion made another gesture with his other hand. A torrent of energy was hurled right at the shadow, surrounding it. A gold light formed around the shadow, causing it to reveal its true identity. The figure was a young man in his late teens with long blue hair and green eyes. The figure wore a gray shirt under a long white, sleeveless coat, and brown baggy pants. The figure had a claw mark on his forehead. The young man screamed as the energy dispersed, causing him to drop to the ground. The man weakly glared up at Orion.

Orion's jaw dropped slightly. "You?" Orion's eyes flashed slightly as energy once again formed in his hand. He raised his hand and let loose the energy. The said energy slammed right through the man, causing him to wither in agony.

Sora's eyes widened with shock. "NO!"

"S-so…Sor…a…"The man choked, trying to get up. He managed to lean up on his elbows before Orion blurred and reappeared right beside the man. He formed his blade again and slammed it down right into the man's back. The man screamed as Orion jerked the blade out.

"I will finish you off right here and now." Orion said, holding the blade in his hand. He brought the blade down on the man's head…

Or at least he tried to. The man quickly drew his own blade and blocked the lethal blow. The man flashed gold and quickly rolled out of the way as Orion brought his sword down on the man again. The man growled and quickly swung his sword sideways. The blade flashed gold. "IRONREAVER!" The man shouted as his blade made contact with Orion's.

Orion jumped back a few yards. He dismissed his blade and smirked. "How did you get out of the hold of the Master of Ceremonies? I am quite confused. But nonetheless, it appears that you coming here and attack was not part of the plan." Orion gave Sora and the man a mock bow. "Until next time." And on that note, he vanished.

When Orion was gone, the man instantly fell to his knees, grabbing his abdomen in pain. Sora grabbed hold of her halberd and forced herself on her feet, using her halberd as support. She weakly limped over to where the man was knelt down and fell to her knees. The man looked at Sora for a moment, then smiled.

"You okay?" He asked.

"No… way…" Sora stuttered. "But… how?"

"What… no thanks for saving your life…?" The man weakly smiled.

"Are you really here…? Ryu…?"

The man just smiled.

_(Laurante Castle)_

Dustin, Nina, and Kagumi stood in the palace garden of Laurante castle. A number of different-colored flowers were all over the garden. Numerous different kinds of flowers and ivy laced up the fences that bordered the garden. A different variety of trees blocked the intense ray of the sun. A small stream ran the course of the garden.

After being assaulted by the Master of Ceremonies' warrior, they had wanted to check back with Jonothan to see if he knew anything about these people. Nina just wanted to know if he had heard anything about Ryu. Either way, the three now simply stood and looked around at the garden. The garden also served as entryway to the castle entrance.

"Hm. Would one say that coming here was a good idea?" Dustin mused to himself. He had ditched his normal outfit and was now currently wearing a red vest over a sleeveless white shirt. He had on a pair of baggy brown pants and a pair of black boots. He had a pair of silver bracers on his wrists. Strapped on his back was a brown leather sheath with his new sword in it. He turned to his two companions.

"Maybe Jonothan has found something out." Nina mused. She had switched out of her armor in favor for a sleeveless ankle-length blue dress with a thigh-high slit running down the side. She was wearing a pair of black bracers with gold embroidery running along them and a pair of black boots with the same style of embroidery on them.

Kagumi pulled at Nina's arm. To hide her wings and identity, she was wearing a brown cloak with a hood on it that fell to her knees. She was also wearing a pair of brown boots too. Nina glanced down at Kagumi, who was pointing to a couple of guards approaching them. Kagumi hid behind Nina, obviously scared.

Nina smiled and placed her hand on the scared child's shoulder. "It's alright. They are not going to hurt us." Kagumi nodded slightly and stepped back in front of Nina. The guards saluted Nina and Dustin and then grimaced.

"Princess Nina. By what do we owe the pleasure of this visit?" One of the guards said.

"We have come to speak with Emperor Jonothan. If you would please escort us to where he is, we could be most pleased." Nina said, holding her head high.

"Normally we would, your highness, but you see…" The second guard said nervously. "His highness is currently in the middle of an… important meeting right now."

"But this is urgent business that must be discussed now!" Dustin said. "It could be a matter of life and death if it is not discussed."

"I see." The first guard said. "If that is the case, Princess Nina? Companions of the princess? Please follow us."

Nina and Dustin nodded to each other as the two guards gestured for Nina and the others to go on ahead. The first guard took the lead and pushed open the large metal doors that lead to the entrance of the palace.

_(Laurante: conference room)_

"Please, your highness, there is no need to be so… distraught." Jonothan muttered through gritted teeth.

The poor emperor was currently staring down the king and queen of Anglous. They had arrived a few hours ago for some inane reason (at least to Jonothan). There had been rumors that the princess Nina was traveling through the Eastern lands and was somewhere near the imperial city. So, they decided to go and question Jonothan about it, since he was the ruler of the Katobario Empire.

The three royals were currently seated around a large, fine wooden round table with a red and navy blue cloth on it. The chairs were made of the same wood as the table. Suits of armor lined the walls, along with electric torches that were emanating a soft glow. Several guards were stationed at the large, wooden double doors to make sure that no one interrupted the meeting. Jonothan almost wished someone actually _would _interrupt the meeting.

Jonothan sat at the head of the table, with the king and queen at his left and his right, respectively. The king wore a gold crown on his head. He was dressed in a fine dark red and navy blue tunic. He wore a navy blue cloak over his shoulders with gold shoulder pads on it. The queen wore a circlet on her head over her graying-blonde hair. She was dressed in a multi-layer navy blue and purple dress. Both had serious looks on their faces.

"I say this again, your _highness…_" Queen Marina said icily. "If you have any information as to the whereabouts of our daughter, you better tell us."

"Your _highness…_" Jonothan said with equal disdain. "If I knew where her highness, Princess Nina was, I would be most sure to tell you. As you can see, the princess is not here."

"But there were rumors that she was here!" The queen said, raising her voice somewhat.

"Rumors are only hearsay." Jonothan said, his patience wearing dangerously thin. "We cannot be certain if any of them are actually true."

"Your highness!" A guard said, entering the conference room. He quickly bowed. He looked back up, his face flustered. "Please forgive the sudden intrusion, but there are people here to see you with urgent news."

Jonothan almost leaped for joy at the sudden interruption. Of course, he didn't actually jump up out of his seat. If he did so, them it would not have gone over too well with the irate royal couple. Jonothan masked the joy on his face with a slightly annoyed look.

"Can this matter not wait? I am in the middle of an important meeting with the King and Queen of Anglous." Jonothan said.

"But, that's the point, your highness!" The guard said. "It is Princess Nina and her companions that are here to see you!"

"Nina is here?" The king said, standing up. "If that is the case, send her and her… companions in, NOW!"

The guard looked at Jonothan for instructions. Jonothan sighed and made a motion with his hand. "Do as the king says. Send them in please."

The guard gave Jonothan a questioning look, but shrugged. "O-of course, your highness. Please excuse me." The guard bowed again, then walked out of the room.

The queen gave Jonothan a withering glare. "I thought you said that Nina was not here, your highness."

Jonothan wanted to scream at that moment. "I _did _say that, your highness. She must have recently arrived here…"

"Your highness?" The guard said, reentering the room. "May I present, Princess Nina of Anglous,"

The guard bowed as Nina walked past the guard and through the double doors. Her eyes widened when she was her parents in the room. She cleared her throat and bowed to Jonothan. Dustin and Kagumi entered the room shortly after Nina and bowed to Jonothan, too.

"Princess Nina?" Jonothan said. "May I ask you exactly _why_ you are here?

"Nina!" The queen shouted, standing up from her seat. "Where have you been? How DARE you just run off without telling us where you were going! What is the meaning of this!"

"Mother!" Nina yelled back. "Please! This is very important!"

"What is more important than your duties to your family and people!" The queen yelled.

"I…" Nina said.

"Your majesty?" Dustin said as he walked over and stood next to Nina. "Her highness, Princess Nina is on a very important mission. She is out looking for…"

"You are looking for that person Ryu, aren't you!" The queen snapped. "Don't deny it! I told you already, that charlatan is not worth wasting your time looking for!"

"Mother!" Nina yelled, her eyes rimming with tears. "How DARE you say that about Ryu! You have no idea what kind of person he really is, do you? You know nothing about the world around you, other than what happens inside your own freaking castle!"

"How DARE you talk to me, your MOTHER like that!" The queen shouted, her face turning red from all the screaming.

"Please…" Jonothan muttered, gripping his hands on the table. "There is no need for yelling…"

"Stay out of this!" The king ordered. Jonothan stared at the king wide-eyed as he and the queen walked over to Nina and Dustin. "Nina, you are returning to Anglous with us at once. You have no say in the matter. When we get back, you will be severally punished for this "stunt" that you have pulled. Furthermore…"

"ENOUGH!" Jonothan bellowed, slamming his fists onto the table. "I am the ruler of this land. What I say is law. You do not come into my home, no less my land and tell ME what to do, your_ highness!_" Jonothan growled. "Since you have arrived here, you have acted like nothing but little children. You will conduct yourselves properly, or I will have to ask you to leave. This is not a place where you can have your family arguments! This is a place of business! Do I make myself clear, your highness?"

Everyone in the room stared at Jonothan in shock. The queen made a series of unrecognizable sounds. She blankly stared at Jonothan for a moment, before her eyes rolled back in her head and she collapsed to the floor. Jonothan stared down at the queen, then looked at one of the guards. He sighed as he said, "Go tell one of the maids to prepare a room. Her majesty, Queen Marina has apparently fainted."

And with that, Jonothan sat back down in his chair.

_(Castle: guestroom)_

"I must apologize for acting the way that I did." The king said. He was sitting down in a chair, next to a bed. It had been half an hour since Jonothan's outburst at the royals. "The queen and I were out of line." The king said.

Jonothan nodded slightly. He was standing over next to the wooden door, arms crossed. Nina and Kagumi were also seated in seats and Dustin was leaning against the window. The queen was currently resting in the bed that the king was seated beside, a wet cloth on her forehead. A table was on the other side of the bed with a basin sitting on it full of cold water. A maid was walking around the room, checking on the queen every once in a while.

"I apologize for the sudden outburst." Jonothan said. "I was also out of line." Jonothan then turned to Nina. "What was it that you wanted to say, Princess?"

"We were wondering if there have been talk about any attacks in this area recently." Nina said. "Because, we were attacked near the Underground Entrance by someone who called herself the Sword Princess."

"I am sorry." Jonothan said. "I cannot say that I have heard anything about this matter. I will send out several of my soldiers to investigate this matter, since it may turn into a problem later."

"Thank you, your highness." Dustin said.

"I do not believe that we have been properly introduced." Jonothan said, looking over at Dustin and Kagumi. "I am Emperor Jonothan Katobario. Who do I owe the honor of this visit to?"

"I am the Galaxy Operative Director, the G-O-D." Dustin said. "I am on a quest with her highness, Princess Nina, to find her missing friend, Ryu." Dustin then gestured to Kagumi. "And this young child is Kagumi. We have saved her from the vile one that has called herself the Sword Princess."

Kagumi nodded. Jonothan smiled and walked over to Kagumi. "It is nice to meet you, young lady." Kagumi blushed slightly. Jonothan turned back to Dustin. "You said that you were a god? Is that true?"

"In a way, I suppose." Dustin said, scratching his head. "I am the G-O-D after all." Dustin laughed.

"He DID come from the sky in a flash of light." Nina pointed out.

"Ah, it matters not how he arrived." Jonothan said. "Oh great one, allow me the honor to hold a grand feast in your honor."

Dustin grinned. "Ah, there is no need for that, your highness. I have but one simple question that may aid in our valiant quest. Have you heard anything of the one called Ryu?"

"I am sorry, but I have not." Jonothan said. "Princess, great one, what are you going to do now?"

Nina glanced over at her father. The king cleared his throat and averted his gaze from Nina and Dustin. "Nina, you may want to leave while your mother is still unconscious."

"Father?" Nina asked, somewhat confused. "What are you saying?"

"I am saying that I was out of line for the way that I have treated you. I know that nothing I say or do will stop you from finding your friend. I also know that you are in safe hands, seeing as a god is accompanying you. Please, be careful and safe journey." The king said.

"What will you tell Mother?" Nina asked.

"I will tell her that you have made your decision and will come home when you are done with your quest." The king said. "You are a young adult now. It is time that we allowed you to grow up and make your own decisions, seeing as you are the next heir to the throne of Anglous."

"Thank you father." Nina said as she stood up. She bowed to the king, then to Jonothan. "Thank you, your highness."

Dustin and Kagumi also stood up and bowed. "It has been an honor, your highness." Dustin said, looking at Jonothan. "If you would now please excuse us, we have a quest to continue." Dustin, Nina, and Kagumi turned to leave.

"By all means." Jonothan said. "And if you should find yourself in any trouble, know that the Katobario Empire will stand behind you and fight along side of you."

"And, the kingdom of Anglous will also help you if you are in ever of any need." The king said, smiling at Nina.

"Thank you." Nina said before turning around and exiting the room with Dustin and Kagumi.

When the three had left, Jonothan turned to the king. "So, um… exactly _how well_ do you think the queen will take the news that Nina has left again?"

The king sighed. "How fast can you run?"

Jonothan gave the king a confused look. "Why?"

"Because she will most likely be throwing random objects at us when she learns that Nina has taken off again."

Jonothan sighed. It was times like these that he was most thankful that he had actually taken the time to get that second cup of coffee. Thankful, indeed.

_(Forest outside Laurante)_

The only light at the campsite was the medium-sized fire that was burning bright in the dead of night. Several rocks and a log littered the campground. A large tent was pitched up far away from the fire.

The sounds of the loud squawk of a bird could be heard overhead. Cat looked up form where she was sitting in the camp that Kane and Manna had made. Kane, who had been sitting right beside her, followed her gaze. Flying overhead was the Great Bird. Cat groaned as Manna and Rena camp walking into the campsite.

"What's wrong?" Manna said. Cat pointed upward to the sky.

Rena and Manna looked up to where Cat was pointing and groaned. The Great Bird was flying away from Laurante. Kane groaned and stood up. "Well, that caps off my night…" He grumbled as he walked over to the tent and crawled in.

"Uh… we missed them again, I take it?" Cat asked.

"It appears to be that way…" Manna sighed in annoyance.

"Oi. This trip just keeps getting better and better…" Rena sighed. "Don't you guys agree?" She sighed again as she plopped down on one of the rocks Kane had hauled into the campsite earlier that night.

"Ahem to that." Cat said, placing her head in her hands.

"Agreed…" Manna sighed, leaning up against a tree. "This must be some sort of record for irritation-factor."

TO BE CONTINUED ;;;

(1) "Hold."

14


	6. Chapter 6

Standard disclaimer: I don't own this series… though I wish I did. All well. That's life, I suppose.

"_The dream isn't over yet, though I often say I can't forget. I still relive that day: "You've been there with me all the way," I still hear you say."_

---_1000 Words_, FFX-2 OST

Celtic Moon 

_(Rhalpha: Ranger's Guild)_

"This still doesn't make any sense…" An attractive woman muttered under her breath. She was wearing a two-piece suit that was dark blue and black. She was wearing a pair of black boots and glows. Her short white hair was pulled back in a manageable style. She adjusted her glasses and looked back down at her clipboard. "Please explain to me again just who attacked you Sora." The woman said.

Sora groaned. She had been giving the same speech at least ten different times already today. She sighed as she slumped back down in the wooden chair she was sitting in. The woman currently questioning her was the head of the Ranger's Guild, Zeno Megami… her mother. So far that day, Sora not only had to explain to at least seven different higher-ups about the psycho that attacked her in the woods, but now her mother was questioning her _again _for the third time.

Zeno's office was a medium-sized room with a large wooden oak desk at the back of the room, with several large stacks of papers and documents on it. A black laptop also adorned the desk, though Zeno didn't use it much. She still didn't like technology very much. There were several chairs littered throughout the office, much like the one that Sora was currently sitting in. There was a large window at the back of the desk that shown in the majority of the light and several smaller windows on the left and right side of the office. There was an overhead light on the ceiling that wasn't turned on unless it was nighttime and Zeno had to work late.

Sora had actually been rather amazed that she had managed to make it back to Rhalpha in one piece. Actually, due to all the wounds she had received, she was amazed she could walk, let alone move at all. Several other rangers that had been on patrol had found her and that guy that had saved her passed out in the woods with multiple wounds all over their bodies. Sora had came to several hours later in the guild's infirmary. Her body had been a patchwork of bandages and medical wrap. Apparently though, she wasn't as bad off as she should have been. All her serious injuries had been healed long before the other rangers had found her.

That blue-haired stranger that had more than a passing resemblance to Ryu, however, had not been so lucky. He still had all of the major wounds all over him and was still lying in the infirmary out cold. The nursing staff had no idea when he was going to wake up. So, she had no idea just what was going on. Though, she had a sneaky suspicion that that stranger knew. She was also hoping against hope that he was indeed Ryu, and not just some guy that looked like him… though only one person came to mind that looked anywhere similar to Ryu… and that was…

"Sora, what you are saying doesn't make much sense." Zeno said, snapping Sora out of her musings. "There were no traces of a struggle and all Maak and Reias said they found were you and that young man unconscious in the woods. I'm not sure what is going on."

Sora frowned. "Neither am I… but we were attacked!"

"There… is no supporting evidence on this matter." Zeno said. "Though, if you want to look into this matter yourself, I will not stop you. This is your mission, after all."

"I understand." Sora said standing up. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go check on that guy that was with me."

"Alright. Report back in about an hour for another mission briefing. I think you will want to hear this." Zeno said as she walked over to her desk and pulled out the chair and sat back down. She laid her clipboard on the desk.

"Oh?" Sora asked, turning back around to face Zeno. "What's up?"

"Apparently," Zeno picked up a report and glanced over it once. "That there is some problems going on in the Arad Desert. Apparently Worent was attacked by an unknown group of mercenaries, or something like that."

"Hm." Sora mumbled. "Alright. I'll be back for the briefing."

_(Ranger's guild: infirmary)_

_Worent's been attack? _Sora mused to herself as she made her way to the infirmary. _But who would do that… and why? It just doesn't make much sense… Huh?_ Sora stopped just at the entrance to the infirmary. Something went off in the back of her head, something very familiar… and very powerful was beyond the white door.

She slid the door open and walked into the main office of the infirmary. The main room's walls were painted a pale green and white with several pictures hanging on the wall. Several light-colored chairs were up against the furthest wall from the door. A couch of the same color was up against the opposite wall.

Sora turned left and walked down the hall to the patients' wing. Sora walked cautiously as she made her way through the narrow hallway. Closed doorways were aligning either side of the wall that lead to different patient rooms. Sora sighed and walked right on past them and stopped outside of one of the rooms. She took a deep breath and braced herself, placing her hand on her belt. She opened the door and walked into the room.

The room was nothing fancy. In fact it was just a simple white room with a window over on the left wall, that was opened half way. There were a couple of pictures hanging on the walls and a table over in the corner with some medical equipment on the table. A bed was over next to the opened window. What surprised Sora, however, was that the man was not lying in the bed as he was a few hours ago. With his injuries, he should not have been able to move yet.

Sora scratched her head and looked around the room. Apparently, she was the only one currently standing in the room. The sense shot off again and Sora nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt a gloved hand on her left, bare shoulder. She spun around and jerked out her pike and extending it to it's full six feet. Sora struck at her unseen opponent, not really sure as to what she was doing. The same-gloved hand caught the pike before it was able to hit said opponent.

"Nice to see you too, Sora." The young man smirked. "Really, I don't remember you ever being _this _violent towards me…"

Sora's eyes widened in shock as the man continued. "But, then again, I'm leaving out our little bout at the Temple of Ages for some odd reason…" The man looked thoughtful, letting go of Sora's pike. He cocked his head to the side and gave Sora a slightly confused look. "What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost… Sora?"

The man waved his hand in front of a surprised Sora's face. She shook her head and grabbed the front of the man's jacket. She brought his face inches from hers. "Who are you!"

The man laughed. "Uh, now that's a stupid question Sora."

"Y-you… can't be here…" Sora muttered, letting the man go. "You… didn't you _die?_" Sora looked straight at the man, a confused and angry look painted across her face.

"I'm not dead Sora. But came pretty crap close to it, though." The man said.

"Then… Ryu!" Sora shouted, running up to the man and engulfing him in a giant bear hug. The said Ryu almost lost his balance as Sora tackled him. "I… I can't believe… Ryu…" Sora said, her face buried in Ryu's shoulder.

"Yeah… it's me." Ryu said, slightly amused by his companion's reaction upon seeing that he was indeed alive.

Sora raised her head from Ryu's shoulder and held him at arm's length. She looked at him straight in the eyes. "You… really have some explaining to do, Ryu…"

"We'll get to that later." Ryu said, smiling slightly. "But right now, I need to know what's been going on in the past three months. It's urgent."

_(Mydi)_

"How much are you going to buy, anyway?" Rei grumbled as Elly looked at the various items at the gift shop of the large city of Mydi. Rei sighed as the kid looked at all the different kinds of candy that was aligning the shelves of the store. The child had wanted to get a change of clothes, as to not attract too much attention to herself.

Rei sighed and had taken her to a clothing store. Elly had chosen a red dress with big puffy sleeves that had a white apron on it and a big bow in the back. Rei had commented that that outfit made her stand out more. Elly had just rolled her eyes and told Rei to grow up.

"Ooo…" Elly grinned, waving to catch the attention of the shopkeeper. A middle-aged man, wearing a white shirt and a pair of black pants over a gray apron walked over from where he had been taking inventory on some miscellaneous items to the counter. Elly grabbed hold of the edge of the wooden counter and tried to lift herself up to look over the counter.

Rei sighed and knelt down to pick the kid up. Elly giggled as he hefted Elly up against his left hip. The shopkeeper smiled and looked at Elly. "What can I do for you today?"

"I want a big bunch of cotton candy!" Elly giggled, pointing to the cotton candy on the shelf. "And I want a lollypop and I want…"

"Enough gaki." Rei sighed. "Just the lollypop please."

The shopkeeper smiled and handed Elly a lollypop. Elly jumped down from Rei and started to eat the sucker as Rei pulled out a few zenny and handed it to the shopkeeper. Rei nodded and grabbed Elly's hand and dragged her out of the store and onto the busy streets of the city. Mydi was much like Anglous, sans a giant castle in the heart of the city. Rows of wooden and stone houses lined the cobblestone sidewalks. Many different shops stood side by side.

Rei shook his head as he led Elly away from the store. Elly gave no struggle to the thief, as she was happily eating away at the lollypop. Rei groaned and stopped in the middle of the busy street. He looked around, as if looking for something, or someone. His eyes stopped upon one of the alleys between the shops. There, standing in the dark alley, was a figure that was dressed in a red, hooded cloak. The figure nodded and seemed to meld in with the shadows.

Rei groaned as he picked up a surprised Elly and bolted into the alleyway. Rei looked around, trying to find the figure again, but saw nothing. Rei sighed and started to walk out of the alley.

"Titan." A deep, male voice said.

Rei looked around then looked up. Above him, on one of the metal poles that were sticking out of the wall was standing the cloaked figure. The man jumped down and landed on the ground inches away from where Rei stood.

"Crapo, titan." The man said. "Do you know who I am?"

Rei growled and jumped back a few feet. He couldn't risk getting into a fight with this man, not with Elly there with him. Plus, there were too many innocent people around that might get hurt. The man just laughed. He reached up to the hood of his cloak and pulled the hood back. Rei's jaw was nearly street level.

The man looked to be about in is mid to late twenties. He had long dark, jet-black hair with a tint of blue to it and emerald green eyes that glowed with an ethereal light. The man smirked and walked over to Rei, his hands spread out showing that he was not armed.

"You…" Rei muttered. "I know _exactly _who you are. What are _you _doing here?"

All traces of humor on the man's face disappeared. "Titan, your allies are in trouble. You need to go Reis."

"Reis?" Elly asked. "But that's where…"

"Ryu is no longer there." The man said, gaining a surprised look from Elly. "Titan, if you want to save your allies, you must go to Reis. That is where your enemy awaits."

"Where's Reis?" Rei grumbled.

The man sighed. "You will need the Great Bird to reach it. Seek out the Princess Nina. She is currently traveling with a young man and a child. Their last heading was Laurante. I do not know where they are now."

"You didn't answer my question: where's Reis?" Rei asked.

"I myself do not know the exact whereabouts of Reis. Only that it is located somewhere in the Arad Desert. They must be stopped before the Harvest Moon." The man said as he lifted his hood back over his head and turned to walk away.

"Are you just running now?" Rei shouted after the man. "Are you that much of a coward! The Master of Ceremonies makes Myria look like a rank amateur! You and I both know that!" If the man heard Rei, he showed no response to Rei's comment. He simply continued walking until he could no longer be seen. Rei growled and muttered something under his breath.

Elly looked slightly confused. She glanced up at Rei. "Who was that?" She asked. Rei sighed and looked down at Elly.

"Just a coward." Rei said. "Nothing more than a bloody coward."

_(Guild: library)_

"Oi… sounds like everyone's had fun without me." Ryu smiled slightly, after hearing Sora's version of what happened over the past three months. He shifted in his seat as Sora stood up and walked over to another table.

Ryu just shook his head and picked up another journal. Three months and trouble was already rearing its ugly head again. "So much for peace…" He sighed.

"Okay, now please explain as to how you are here." Sora said, looking over from where she was standing.

"I… I'm not really sure. All I remember is… well, helping you in the woods. That's all, really." Ryu sighed.

"Amnesia _again_?" Sora smirked as she walked over to one of the many rows of shelves lining the walls in the guild's library.

"No… It's almost like something is preventing me _from _remembering. I remember what happened after the battle with Dracen. The blasts that we both let loose would have killed him and me. Not only that, but it would have killed Rena and Kane, too. I couldn't let that happen. So, I ended the fusion before the blast hit me… well us, I suppose would be the better word for it. I blacked out and the next thing I knew, I was saving you. Everything else is pretty much a blur." Ryu sighed. "That make any sense at all?"

"More or less. It's the best we have so far, anyway." Sora stopped sort of a giant bookshelf aligned with books and grabbed four books from the top shelf. "Maybe something in these journals will say something about what happened to us in the woods. Rangers are pretty well traveled, so maybe someone ran into that man that attacked us." She smirked as she walked back over to the long, wooden table that Ryu was sitting at and laid the books down on the table in front of Ryu. She sighed and pulled out a chair and sat back down next to Ryu. She scooted over and leaned over Ryu's shoulder, to see what he was reading.

"That's the journal that Maak and Reias recorded from yesterday." Sora mused. "Anything interesting in it?"

"No. It's just retelling what you told me about that guy that attacked us in the woods." Ryu sighed as he closed the journal. He picked up a journal from the bottom of the pile and opened it.

"That's one of the journals from two months ago." Sora said.

Ryu nodded as he started to flip through the journal, quickly scanning the pages as he did. He stopped half way through the journal at a page with the map of Asparia's Arad Desert drawn on it. He looked questionably at Sora, who only shrugged.

"Must have been recorded by the rangers that were sent on assignment to the Arad Desert. Does it say anything about what the rangers were doing out there?" Sora asked.

Ryu shrugged and scanned the page. Nothing seemed too important, until he came to part of a paragraph that talked about a mountain region on the eastern tip of the continent. Two words seemed to jump out at Ryu: Reis and Celtic Moon. Ryu drew in a sharp breath. Sora looked at Ryu and realized he was shaking.

"What's wrong… Ryu?" Sora asked, placing her hand on Ryu's shoulder in order to get his attention.

Ryu glanced up at Sora, his eyes widen with fear. "Reis… that's where…" Ryu grabbed his head and looked down at the journal. "I… I know that place… that's where… ernn…" Ryu moaned, closing his eyes as he held his head. "My head hurts… what's going on?"

"I… honestly don't know." Sora said, a hint of concern in her voice. "What's Reis anyway? What does the log say?"

Ryu opened his eyes and looked back down at the entry. "It says that… Reis is a place of some sort…" Ryu grabbed the journal. "…"

"What?" Sora asked, confused.

"The person who wrote the log says that he stumbled across a band of mercenaries two months ago. They had set up camp in some sort of ancient ruins and…" Ryu groaned as he held his head with one hand. Sora nodded and picked up the journal and continued to read.

"It says that when the ranger stumbled upon the ruins and the mercenaries, his party was attacked by people in hooded cloaks. Uh, sure. That sounds comforting." Sora muttered. "Any of this sound familiar?"

Ryu shook his head. "N…no."

"I see. Anyway, apparently the rangers were all attacked and only two managed to survive. It also says that they went into the ruins and in the main hallway, they saw some sort of table with a person lying on it and a person standing behind the table… Ryu?" Sora asked, noticing that Ryu's eyes were tightly shut and his hand on his head again. "Do you want me to stop reading?"

"No… continue." Ryu muttered through the pain.

"Well, anyway, it goes on to say that the person behind the table was saying something about the Harvest Moon. She then spotted the two and killed one of them… the other barely made it out alive and quickly retreated back to Rhalpha… What's the deal with the Harvest Moon, anyway?"

"The Celtic Moon…" Ryu whispered. He looked up at Sora. "The Harvest Moon is also called the Celtic Moon by some, is it not?"

"I suppose… why?" Sora asked.

"…well…" Ryu started, but a ranger walked into the library and interrupted Ryu before he had a chance to continue.

"Hey Sora?" The ranger said. "Zeno wants to see you for that briefing now!"

"Oh, okay…" Sora said, then turned back to Ryu. "Ryu?"

"Let's… go." Ryu said as he climbed to his feet shakily.

"Okay…" Sora said as she followed Ryu out the library's door.

_(Guild: Zeno's office)_

"Sora, I'm glad you could make it." Zeno said as Sora and Ryu walked into the office. Several other rangers were already present and seated in chairs that littered the office.

"Just doing some research Captain." Sora said as she sat down in a chair. Ryu leaned up against the wall, right next to Sora's chair.

"I see that your friend is doing much better." Zeno said, giving a nod in Ryu's direction. Ryu just nodded. "Anyway," Zeno flipped through the papers on her clipboard. She paced around the room, scanning the papers. "As all of you may be aware, Worent has recently been attacked by a group of mercenaries. Usually, the Ranger's Guild would not get involved with the affairs of Worent, but it seems that it is the same group that attacked several of out high ranking rangers that were sent to investigate some ruins out there two months ago."

Ryu crossed his arms and closed his eyes. Sora glanced up at the young dragon and noticed that his face was contorted, as if in pain. Zeno continued. "Worent seems to be holding its own for now, but reports have stated that they don't know how much longer they will hold out. So, we are going to send out a group of rangers to investigate the matter and report back any finding…"

"Captain!" Sora shouted, standing up from her seat. "Allow me to take up this mission myself." She glanced over at Ryu, who had not moved an inch. "This is somewhat… personal."

"How so, Megami?" Zeno asked, looking somewhat skeptical.

"Just… I think it may have something to do with that man that attacked us in the woods. I know it's a long shot, but it's all I have to go on right now. Call it a hunch or whatever you want, but…"

"I see." Zeno said. "Anyone object to Sora taking this mission?" If anyone was mad at Sora's suggestion, they didn't state it. "I see. All right Sora. It's your mission. But you are not going by yourself."

On cue, a man walked into the office. He was a tall, bald, muscular man who was wearing a black sleeveless shirt and black pants and steel-toed boots. He also was wearing a pair of black gloves on. He walked over to where Zeno stood. Zeno gestured to the new comer. "Megami, this is Vin Sphere. He is a mercenary and bounty hunter. He has agreed to accompany the rangers for this mission. He is also our informant in this case."

"But…" Sora started, but Vin raised his hand to silence her.

"You will need all the help you can get, Ranger." Vin said.

Sora grumbled something under her breath and she, Vin, and Ryu walked out of the office. Sora looked at Ryu, who had regained some of the color in his face, then turned to Vin and gave him a death glare. He easily stood a good foot taller or so than Sora. He was even taller than Ryu by a several inches.

"Just because you are a mercenary and bounty hunter, don't think that gives you the right to call all the shots. This is my mission, not yours… so." Sora growled.

"I understand this is your mission." Vin said, never loosing the calmness around him. "But you will need all the help you can get once you get to Worent."

"Why is that!" Sora growled.

"Because, the ones that are attacking Worent, are the warriors of the Master of Ceremonies." Vin said.

Sora looked slightly confused. "And just _who_ is _that _suppose to be!" Sora started to yell, but a groan from behind her cut her off. She turned around to see that Ryu had fallen to his knees and was holding his head in pain.

"Ryu…?" Sora asked cautiously. "What…?"

Vin nodded and knelt down beside Ryu. Ryu looked up at Vin with a terrified look in his face. "I thought so." Vin nodded. He then placed the palm of his hand on Ryu's forehead and started to chant something. Ryu's eyes rolled back in his head as he started to glow gold. Sora's eyes widened as she saw this entire thing happening.

"What's going on!" Sora demanded as Vin took his hand away from Ryu's head. Ryu ceased glowing and fell backwards on the ground. "What did you do!"

Vin simply stood up. Sora knelt down next to Ryu and noticed that the claw mark on his forehead was gone. Sora lifted Ryu's head off the ground as Ryu's eyes started to open. Ryu groaned and he sat up. Both looked at Vin in confusion.

"Someone was attacking Ryu. I simply put up a mind barrier on Ryu so that they couldn't attack him anymore. Though, I don't know how long it will last." Vin explained.

Sora helped Ryu stand up. "Who would attack Ryu?" Sora asked.

"I don't know. But, I do know that it is triggered whenever someone mentions anything about what is going on in Worent. Though, the mind trick was rather simple. Whoever placed it on Ryu did a sloppy job." Vin shook his head. "We better get moving. It will be dark soon."

Sora and Ryu nodded as they followed Vin to the supplies room. Ryu shook his head. Just what was really going on and why did he have a really bad feeling about this? Why couldn't he remember what had happened to him?

TO BE CONTINUED

12


	7. Chapter 7

Standard disclaimer: I don't own Breath of Fire. All I own is my hundred or so action figures. I wanna an InuYasha action figure! Well, someone needs to help my Subaru and Kairi action figures take down my evil Pokémon figures… such as the vile pikachu. No, really! Maybe Kikyo and Legolos can shoot arrows at the stupid rat as Tidus, Yuna, Zidane, and Rinoa hack away at it. Rikku can always steal from the stupid rat as Sakura and Riku beat the crap out of pikachu and Yami Yugi, Kurama, and Yusuke attack with their bizarre combined power of the Rei Gun, Rose Thorn Whip, and the Millenium Puzzle. Ah, and let's not forget Harry Potter leading the mass army of Dragonball Z action figures into battle against pikachu. And then, Rouge and Riddick and come and finish pikachi off…

Um… I'll shut up now… ;;;

"_There's a song that's inside of my soul. It's the one that I've to write over and over again. I'm awake in the infinite cold. But you sing to me over and over again. So I lay my head back down and I lift my hands and pray to be only yours I pray. To be only yours I know now, you're my only hope."_

_---Only Hope, _Mandy Moore

Only Hope 

_(Somewhere over the orbit of Asparia's northern continent)_

"Computer, readout of the planet's development." A young woman said, staring at a computer console. She was a young woman who looked to be about in her late teens. She was wearing a blue short-sleeve shirt and a pair of black pants and a pair of black boots. She had red hair that was about shoulder-length. The odd thing about her was that she had a pair of cat ears instead of the normal human ears and a tail.

The cat-girl was currently sitting in a metallic seat that was bolted onto the smooth, gray floor of the room. Computer equipment and control panels were all over the room; the main bridge actually. The girl was currently on the main bridge of her small, spaceship the NU-D4U. The computer beeped.

_"The planet 420-247KO35 is an M class planet with an underdeveloped culture. The inhabitants of the planet call it Asparia." _The computer said.

"So, I guess I can't go exploring as myself, huh?" The girl said, laughing slightly. "What kind of life forms are on the planet?"

_"There are sentient and nonsentient plant and animal life forms on the surface, as well as under the surface." _

"Oh, information about the sentient beings. Are they human?"

_"The sentient life forms are humanoid. There is a species of humanoid life forms in the southern desert that resemble tiger-like creatures. Other than that, the beings are normal humans."_

"Thanks." The girl said. She turned from her console and stared out at the window on the far wall. A sea of stars greeted her. She smiled as she watched the planet from her space ship. This was one of the things she liked about being an explorer. She got to learn about new and exciting things…

_BEEP… BEEEPP…_

The girl jerked around at the sound of the alarms and quickly searched her console for the problem.

"Computer, REPORT!"

_"There is an unknown… vessel approaching 1.2 light years. Mark heading 69.45. Impact in 10 seconds."_

"Oh, no…" The girl said. "Computer? Status? Are they hostile?"

_"State of vessel is unknown."_

"Computer, view screen!"

A black board at the head of the room lit up and showed an image of some strange… vessel, approaching the ship. The girl shook her head and rubbed her eyes upon seeing the strange ship. If she didn't know better, that object looked like…

"Is that a _dragon!_" The girl gasped in surprise.

The vessel looked dragon-shape in design. It was bigger than she could ever imagine. The thing easily towered over her ship by hundreds, thousands of feet. What scared her, other than the sharp claws (huh?) of the ship, was the bright blood red lights in the "face" of the ship. The girl nearly had a heart attack when she saw the vessel's "eyes" blink.

"What in the name of Mau is that!" The girl cried. "Is that thing _real!_"

The "thing" in question flapped its wings and quickly went into a dive right at the NEE-D4U. The girl cried as the dragon's claws, at least, that's what she thought it was, made contact with the wing of her ship. She quickly braced herself as her ship's engines were cut and she was sent spiraling through space, deathly close to the planet's atmosphere. If she didn't get out of this, she was going to get caught by the planet's gravitational pull!

She quickly tired to reroute all available power back to the engines manually, but nothing was working. "Computer! STATUS!"

All she got was static. "Great, the computer's off line. I have no choice! Even though this goes against the UP3, I have to land, or risk getting killed!" The girl quickly strapped herself in and used what little power that was left in the main warp core to navigate her out of control ship to the gravitational field of the planet. The dragon came at her again and rammed into her once more. She screamed as she was literally thrown into the pull of the planet, off course.

The dragon rammed once more, and the girl's chair came unattached from the floor it was bolted to. The last thing the girl remembered before she made contact with the view screen was how a dragon could possibly be flying around in space.

_(Reis: throne room)_

A cloaked figure stood along the side of the northern stone wall of Solona's throne room. He looked at the many torches aligning the old stone walls and smiled slightly. Noisy explorers had been flinting around orbit of the planet. He decided to go and take care of it. The last thing that he needed was people from the Federation of Planets, which was located in the Beta Quadrant of the Milky Way Galaxy.

Funny, how Asparia never knew about other life out beyond their own planet. He knew, however, that there were many races on many different worlds. It was the same everywhere he went. War and death seemed to plague all races regardless of where they were. The man smirked and crossed his arms and shook his head. How does one deal with chaos and destruction? Destruction only leads to more destruction. Hate leads to more hate. No matter how much one tries to fight for what's right, it seems like the cycle of death and destruction always seems to continue. He had been fighting for over 4,000 years. He was tired of seeing all of the death that was dealt to his race.

The man glanced up as he saw another cloaked figure walking through the giant wooden doors. The woman walked over to where the man was standing and simply stared at him for a few moments. Finally, she pulled back her hood. Luna Zandati sighed and crossed her arms. The man shook his head and pulled back his hood to reveal a tan face and messy, short black hair.

"What are you thinking about, Slayer?" Luna said finally, breaking the silence between the two.

"Nothing much." Orion said. "Just about what our next plan of attack will be."

"I thought that Payne was going to try and draw out the worms by attacking Worent." Luna mused.

"She is, but she has gained the attention of Myria's reincarnation and the Destined Child. Not only that, but they are being accompanied by someone who may, or may not, be a Furyian." Orion sighed. "Not the worms that the Master of Ceremonies was trying to draw out."

"The Rune Maiden and the Blade Master, right?" Luna said. "The children from Earth?"

"Yes." Orion said. "Though, it will not matter. I will go to Worent and settle the score with those two. I highly doubt Payne knows how to deal with those two."

"What about the man that may or may not be a Furyian?" Luna questioned.

"Much like the Summoner. We leave him be. If he is a Furyian, then if we try to fight him, we will lose. Besides, we need to recapture the Destined Child. We need him in order to revive the One."

"Yes, I know. But, is this the right way to go about it?" Luna asked.

"Eradicate the Destined Child's soul, and he will cease to exist. If he is no longer in existence, then the Cycles will stop. If we need his power to revive the One, then I see it as a fair trade off, do you not agree?"

"I… am not sure Orion." Luna said. "I know that you have seen much death and destruction in the time you have been alive, but I… just don't think this will solve anything. He's just a child. What right do we have to kill him?"

"You are still young, so you do not know the level of power he is capable of. If given the chance, he will destroy us without a second thought. Because to him, we are the 'bad guys' and he's the 'good guy.' He must be stopped before he can fully control his powers."

"What about the other child?" Luna said in anger. "She is nothing more than a little girl. What harm could she pose to us?"

"The power that she was given is almost on equal level as that of the Kaiser. If she falls into the wrong hands, she is as dangerous as our Kaiser friend."

"Still…" Luna clenched her fists to her sides. "Do we really need their powers to revive our master? Why don't we just use the power of the Furyian from the worms?"

"Because," Orion sighed. "They are the same as the One. They have the power of the Furyian, and the One has the power of the Furyian. If we used their live forces, the powers will only cancel each other out or destroy one another. We cannot risk that happening. Tell me Luna, why do you serve the Master of Ceremonies? You seem to be dead set against using the life force of these 'children.' So why?"

"Because…" Luna looked into Orion's eyes. "I want the death and destruction to end once and for all. I want the Cycles to end. The Master of Ceremonies can make that happen." Luna turned away from Orion, her cloak flaring out behind her as she did so. She pulled the hood back over her head. "That is why I follow the Master of Ceremonies." Luna quickly walked out of the room, the sounds of her footsteps echoing off the ancient walls.

Orion smirked. She had her reasons and he had his. Either way, it would end all soon enough. With or without Solona's help. He will end it all.

_(Forest outside Laurante)_

"EYAH!" Cat screamed as she struck forward with her sword. The target in question back-flipped to dodge being hit by the blade and ended up doing a round-off off a tree stump and landed several yards away from Cat.

Cat grinned and ran to catch up with her target for the day. Kane groaned as the brunette jabbed forward to strike Kane again. He blocked with this own broad sword as the sounds of metal clashing echoed through the dense canopy that the many trees in the forest created. Kane grunted under the pressure of Cat's sword, but pushed up trying to make the girl lose her balance. Cat grinned evilly and lessened her grip on the hilt of the blade, causing Kane to lose balance and fall back from the weight.

Kane growled and jumped back several more feet to give him a little room, trying to execute his attack. Cat grinned again and ran after him, her blade in her right hand. Kane crouched, waiting until Cat was right on top of him, then jumped up and grabbed hold of one of the low-hanging branches. He flipped over it and kicked Cat, causing her to fall to the ground, screeching. Kane landed with a soft thud and sheathed his sword. Smirking, he walked over to Cat and offered her a hand up. Eyes narrowed, she glared up at Kane.

"Is this a trick?" Cat grumbled, gripping the hilt of her sword.

"It's not a trick." Kane said. "I'm trying to help you up."

Cat nodded and reached for Kane's hand. Cat noticed that Kane shifted weight from his left leg to his right. Cat's eyes narrowed again as Kane suddenly jerked backwards, bringing Cat along with him. Cat adjusted her weight on her left leg to brace herself from Kane's little stunt. She jerked back, catching Kane off guard and swung left, letting go of Kane's hand, and causing him to slam up against the nearest tree.

Cat smirked and sheathed her sword. She nodded and did a quick bow. Manna and Rena laughed loudly from the rocks that they were sitting on about forty feet from where the spar took place. Kane groaned as he stumble and got up, rubbing his now sore head. He walked over to Cat and bowed quickly. He then walked over to where Manna and Rena were sitting and glared at them. Rena could do nothing more than hold her sides as she laughed. Manna just shook her head and chuckled slightly.

"Face it, you just got your butt handed to you by her." Manna said. Cat nodded. "You were too slow on shifting your weight. No wonder she caught that."

"I even noticed that one Kane." Rena said between giggles.

Kane sighed and looked back at Cat. "Wanna go again?"

Cat shook her head. "Nah, I don't want to hurt you anymore than you already are."

Kane scowled and plopped down on the ground and crossed his arms over his chest. Cat walked over to Kane and sat down beside him. She stared at him for a moment before scowling and smacking him upside the head in annoyance. Kane groaned and held his head.

"What was that for?" Kane muttered.

"For being such a baby…" Cat sighed. "You are pouting from just ONE loss. It's not like I have whipped your butt every time we've sparred."

"She's got a point." Rena said, finally calming down.

"Is it not the hope of the teacher that the student surpasses them?" Manna said, holding up her pointer finger.

"Yeah, but…" Kane sighed in defeat. The girls had a point. He and Cat had been training nonstop for the past four days and this was the first time that she had even been able to knock him down. As embarrassing as it was, Kane was impressed that Cat had been able to come this far. Hopefully, she would continue to improve before they ended up facing Solona.

"We should be going soon." Manna said, standing up from the rock she was sitting on. "We've spend too much time here as it is. There's no telling how far Dustin and Nina have gotten."

"Where do you think they were going?" Cat asked.

"I think they were heading in the direction of Mydi, last time I checked." Kane said. "So, we head that way?"

"Guess so." Manna sighed.

_(Mydi: pub/inn)_

A dazed looking young woman stumbled into the inn/pub that was located in the heart of the city of Mydi. The young woman in question was dressed in a blue short-sleeve shirt and a pair of black pants and a pair of black boots. She had red hair that was about shoulder-length. The odd thing about her was that she had a pair of cat ears instead of the normal human ears and a tail. On her belt was a holster with something that looked like a hi-tech gun.

The girl ignored the drunken patrons that were leering at her with interest, and just walked over to the bar and sat down on one of the stools. The bartender walked over to her and asked her if she wanted anything to drink, but she quickly turned him down and thanked him.

The poor girl had been monitoring the northern continent of this planet, before something attacked her ship and forced her to crash land in an abandoned heavily dense forest. Her ship was a total wreck and was unable to repair it with the current equipment she had onboard. She thought that the nearest town might have _something _that would be able to help her. Normally, she wouldn't even think about going into a town on a pre-warped class planet, but her intercom was destroyed in the crash, so she couldn't exactly call for help and wait for them to arrive. So, she was forced to leave her ship and go into town looking for help. She remembered that there was a cat-race on this planet, so she hoped that the locals mistaken her for one of them.

Absorbed in her thoughts, she didn't notice the three burly men approach her. One of the burly men, a large hairy man wearing a black sleeveless shirt and a pair of brown pants placed his hand on her slim shoulder. The other two, a man with a yellow mohawk and multiple facial piercing and a man with bright red hair, dressed in a long black sleeveless coat and black pants, got around on either side of her.

The girl's muscles tensed upon the man's contact with her shoulder. She turned around to look at the first thug and cautiously pulled away from him. The man's face contorted into a snarl as he crossed his arms.

"What was that for?" The man demanded. "We's was only trying to get acquainted with you."

"Yeah, what's your problem? Didn't your ma teach you any manners?" The man with the mohawk asked.

"No, sirs. It's just that…" The girl started, but the man with the red hair grabbed the girl's tail to quiet her. She let out a loud shriek as he done so.

"We was only trying to be kind citizens lady." Redhead said in anger. "How dare you insult us."

"That was not the point." The girl yelled. "Now let go of me!"

"Or what? What can a small girl like you do?" The first thug asked, smirking. He grabbed the girl's right arm and held her down.

Mohawk grabbed the girl's left arm. "What can you do against the three of us?"

The girl screamed, trying to get lose, but this only caused the thugs to laugh and hold her down even tighter. Suddenly, the pub doors slammed open and walked in a young man with messy blond hair. A young woman dressed in a blue dress with short blond hair and a younger looking girl with a brown cloak on followed the man. He looked over at the bar where the three men were holding the cat-girl down and growled.

He walked over to the bar and glared up at the three men, who were easily several feet taller than the man. "What is the meaning of holding this girl down like this?" The man asked.

"Who wants to know?" The first thug asked.

"Only the G-O-D." The man said, drawing his sword from the sheath that hung from his side. He pointed the sword at the three men. "Now, let the girl go, or you will regret it!"

The three men simply stared at the young man. "Are you saying that you are some sort of god or something?"

"It's that what the man said?" The woman in the blue dress asked, crossing her arms. "I have seen what he is capable of; you don't want to mess with him."

"Heh, a little fool." Redhead snarled. "Hey boys? Why don't we teach this little punk a lesson and then take these girls back to our place with us and have a little fun, eh?"

The other two men laughed and nodded as the younger girl nervously took a step behind the other blonde. The young man growled in disgust. He stepped between the three men and the girls that were currently accompanying him. "You three disgust me. I will not allow you to have your way with my companions or that fair lady that you currently have held down."

"Oh, and how are you gonna stop us?" Mohawk asked.

"Simple, this way!" The young man jumped into the arm and struck his sword forward. The blade struck the nearest barstool and sliced it in half. The three men let go of the girl and jumped back, getting into a battle stance.

"The little punk thinks he can fight us!" The first thug laughed.

"Bring it on, fool!" The redhead laughed as the three lunged at the young man.

The young man grinned as the three charged him. He jumped up at the last second just as the men were ready to ram him. Instead, they collided with the bar and ended up knocking themselves out. The young man laughed as he jumped down from the bar and quickly ran over to the cat-girl.

The young man held his hand out and helped the girl to her feet. "Are you alright, miss?" the young man asked.

"I am fine now." The young woman blushed slightly, holding onto the man's hand. The blonde-haired woman turned a slight shade of red and in a huff, crossed her arms over her chest and jerked away. The child looked slightly confused.

"That's good to hear." The young man said, completely oblivious to his companion's reaction. "By the way, my name's Dustin Table. I'm the G-O-D. Now, who may I have the pleasure of talking to?"

The cat-girl blushed as she turned away. "Oh. Um, my name is Anna Marie. You can call me Anna." She turned back to Dustin. "Are you really a god?"

"Well, in a way I guess." Dustin laughed. "I am called the G-O-D."

"Well, nice to meet you Anna. I am Nina." The blonde said with annoyance evident in her voice. "This is Kagumi." Nina pointed to the other girl. Kagumi nodded. "We were passing by and heard a scream. We came here to check it out. What's going on?"

"I really don't know." Anna said. "My… ship crashed on shore here and I was forced to come to town to see if they maybe had any spare parts to repair my ship with. I came to the local tavern because they usually hold information about thing. The next thing I knew, those thugs attacked me. Then you guys showed up." She turned to Dustin. "Thank you, oh great one, for saving me."

"Oh, think nothing of it." Dustin laughed. "It was my pleasure. Besides, I can't just ignore a young lady who is in distress. Anyway, you said that your ship crashed and was washed ashore here? Anything we can do to be of assistance?"

Anna tilted her head to the side. _I can't let them know that I'm not from this planet. But the one who calls himself Dustin says that he's a god. He may know of a way to get me home, or at least be able to help me repair my ship. I'll just have to watch them for awhile to know for sure. _"I am not sure." Anna finally answered. "I would not want to inconvenience you."

"Oh, don't worry about it." Dustin said. "You are not inconveniencing us in any way, right Nina?"

Nina stiffly nodded. "See, even Nina thinks so." Dustin said.

"You said that you came from across the sea, right?" Nina asked. Anna nodded nervously. "Where are you from?"

"I…um… am from…"

"Worent, right?" Nina said. "I mean, you have a tail and cat ears. Maybe you are some kind of hybrid."

"Yeah, that's right." Anna muttered, letting out a sigh of relief.

"If that's the case, have you heard of anyone that goes by the name of Ryu Reider?" Nina asked.

"N…no… I haven't heard of that name before." Anna said.

"I see." Nina sighed sadly.

"Why?" Anna asked curiously.

"Well, you see Anna," Dustin smiled. "We are on a mission to find Nina's friend Ryu. He's gone missing and I am trying to help her find him."

"Maybe," Anna thought. _This may work out better than I thought. _"I can help you find him?" _If I stay with Dustin, maybe he can help me get back. He DID say he was a god._

"What?" Nina deadpanned.

"That's a GREAT idea!" Dustin laughed as Kagumi (not really sure what was going on, but hey whatever, right?) clapped.

"It is?" Nina and Anna asked, confused.

"Right! The more, the merrier, right girls?"

"Right!" Anna laughed nervously as Kagumi clapped again.

"Right…" Nina growled slightly, not loud enough to pick up.

"So, it's settled. Nina, where to next?" Dustin asked.

"Well, we can go check out Rolante. It's a port city on the eastern continent. Lots of ships go to port there, so maybe's someone's heard about Ryu." Nina said.

"We going to take a ship there?" Anna asked.

"Not quite." Nina said. Anna gave them a confused look, to which Dustin replied by laughing maniacally.

TO BE CONTINUED 

12


	8. Chapter 8

Standard disclaimer: I don't own the Breath of Fire series. What? Were you expecting me to say something else? ;) 

"There's this love that is burning deep in my soul. Constantly yearning to get out of control. Wanting to fly higher and higher. I can't abide standing outside the fire"

---Standing Outside the Fire, Garth Brooks

The Divine Spirit

of Language

(Unknown residence on Earth)

"Is that so?" A man said into the receiver of the phone. "That is most unfortunate." The man paused for a moment, trying to think about how he would word the next phrase. "What will you do now?"

An angry muffled voice growled in response, causing the man to take the receiver of the phone away from his ear for a moment. When the voice stopped shrieking, he replaced the receiver to his ear. "Was that necessary?" A growl was his response.

He sighed and leaned back in the black leather chair he was sitting in. He wheeled the chair around to face the giant picture window that over-looked a giant city-scape full of busy cars and people going about their afternoon business. The man on the phone looked to be about in his late thirties-early forties with dark, graying brown hair with a pair of glasses on his face. He was wearing a dark brown business suit and tie. He was currently sitting at his large, oak desk talking on the phone to a very angry person. A computer was on the upper right of the desk, and several papers and files were piled up on this desk. Several metal file cabinets were lined up against the left walls and a large leather sofa was against the right wall.

The voice responded quietly. The man nodded. "I understand that you are worried, but you should have more faith in them. Especially her. She knows what she is doing. Plus, you forget who is with them. Manna knows what she's doing. She's been doing this for longer than I have."

The voice responded in annoyance. "When have I ever been wrong about something like this? Katrina Parson and Dustin Table are the ones. It was just most unfortunate that they had to go to Asparia on such… unique circumstances. Manna is currently traveling with Katrina. Also, the dark dragon is protecting her."

The voice sighed in aggression. The man sighed in annoyance. "There's really nothing I can do right now…" The man paused, his head snapping up. His eyes narrowed in thought for a moment. "Ah… can I get back to you? I have a… client coming in right now. Okay. I will talk to you later." The man hung up the phone as a flash of dark purple light filled the office.

"You're a bit early." The man said as the light died down. In it's place was a young woman dressed in black with dark hair. The woman smirked and walked over to the leather sofa and plopped down. She leaned back and crossed her left leg over her right.

"Yeah, I know." The woman smirked again.

"How did you manage to get the time to come here?" The man asked.

"I told them I had business to take care of."

"They suspect nothing then?" The man asked.

"Rena saw right through it. She's getting much better." The woman commented.

"Manna…" The man said. "So, what's the current situation?"

Manna's smirk faded as her face grew serious. "Truth be told? We've already fought Ryu. He's getting stronger. I really don't want to have fight Ryu when he's under Solona's control. But…"

"It might come to that?" The man asked.

"I'm afraid so." Manna said. "Right now, Ryu is traveling with Vin Sphere and Sora Megami. They are going to go to Worent… and right into Solona's trap." Manna said through gritted teeth, clenching her fists.

The man raised an eyebrow. "And… where are you four right now?"

"Ah," Manna said. "Outside of Gate right now. Kane has 'decided' to train Cat in using her sword. I just hope that she will learn how to fully use the power of that blade before we go up against any more of Solona's lackeys."

"…?" The man looking confused. "Ryu's walking into a trap? Isn't Worent in the Arad Desert? Near Reis?"

"Yes." Manna said. "See the problem?"

"So… why aren't you guys there yet?"

"In order to be able to stand a chance of defeating Solona, both the Oathkeeper and the Oblivion have to be there at the same time. We have to find Dustin and Nina before we go after Solona." Manna said.

"I know that." The man sighed. "So… why can't you seem to find Dustin and Nina?"

"Because…" Manna smirked, her face gaining a big grin. "Having to trail them gives Cat and Dustin the time that they need to train their powers. Keep in mind that they knew nothing about themselves before they went to Asparia."

"True… but you must also remember that Dustin thinks this is one really big dream." The man pointed out.

"Still, he will treat this quest like a D and D game."

"Ah, I see then." The man smiled. "No problem then, right?"

"Ah, not really sure." Manna said. "There's one minor problem."

"And that is?" The man asked.

"Its… ah, about Rei Loneso."

"What is it?"

"He's not suppose to go to Reis… for the painfully obvious. And guess who sent him there?" Manna growled.

"He did?" The man asked in disbelief. "Is he crazy?"

"I don't know. But I think we may be running out of time." Manna said as she stood up. "And speaking of time…"

"Ah, I understand." The man nodded.

"I better get back. Rena and Cat are sparring with Kane. With spells. Thunder and lightning spells." Manna smirked slightly. "Oh, and Professor?"

The man nodded. "Yes, Manna?"

"You might not want to piss Sakura off again." Manna said. "She's just worried about Rena, that's all." Manna snapped her fingers and was enveloped in a dark purple light. A second later, she was gone.

The man sighed as he leaned in his chair. "How did she know about that…?" The man glanced back out the window and sighed. "Really nothing that can be done about it now, I suppose." The man stood up and walked over to the center of the room and sat down in a cross-legged position.

"Better get this over with…" The man said as he closed his eyes. A runic circle appeared beneath the man as it flashed dark blue. A light formed around the man and spread throughout the office.

(Unknown)

Darkness once again surrounded Ryu. This was a place that he was all too familiar with. A place that he loathed with a vengeance. A place where his mind was dormant for far too long for him to actually remember. He quickly looked around in confusion, trying to regain his bearings.

It didn't work too well. He walked around aimlessly for what seemed like forever. He knew he was looking for something, he just didn't know what. Anger came over Ryu as he stopped and turned around.

"This is getting really old…" Ryu muttered to himself, his voice echoing off the unseen walls.

Then, what will you do about it? A voice echoed through the dark void.

"You again?" Ryu asked, in a mix of curiosity and annoyance.

Is going to the Arad Desert such a good idea?

"No clue. But, if I want to settle this once and for all, that is the only place that has the answer I need… the answers I want." Ryu said.

I see… well, then. It appears that you have made up your mind, then.

"Yeah…" Ryu sighed. "Actually, truth be told, I have no idea what the heck I am doing… I have no idea where to go. I can remember vaguely what happened before I found Sora… but… it's still so hazy. I'm not even sure if it really happened."

What do you remember?

"The Master of Ceremonies… she said that she was going to use the power of a god to revive something… something terrible… she said that my power is what she needed to…" Ryu held his head, trying to remember something that echoed in the back of his mind.

What else do you remember?

"I don't know…" Ryu muttered. "Everything else is a horrible blur."

I see. The disembodied voice said. Listen Ryu, if you go to the Arad Desert, something horrible will happen. Are you will to put yourself and those you care about in danger?

"What do you mean?" Ryu asked.

Solona is there. You will have to face something that will be very unpleasant when you arrive at the Arad Desert. Do you understand Ryu?

Ryu sighed. He crossed his arms as he looked around in annoyance. "Something very unpleasant… I think I have already had to deal with something like that. Remember Taijkos and Dracen?"

This new enemy makes them look like rank amateurs. Solona is a very dangerous opponent. Her and her warriors do not care what they have to do to get what they want. They will go to any lengths to achieve their goals.

"So… tell me what enemy doesn't do that…" Ryu sighed in annoyance again. "Really, can you cut the mysterious crap and just show me who you are already?"

… fine. The voice said as the environment suddenly shifted. Ryu grabbed his head as he felt the entire area shake. Ryu clenched his eyes shut as the place suddenly stopped spinning. Ryu slowly opened his eyes and gaped.

Ryu appeared to be in what seemed to be a temple of some short… or so he thought. Torches aligned along the walls suddenly shot to life, brightening the room. Runic symbols were painted all over the walls and the ceiling. He noticed a large, detailed runic symbol in the center of the floor, with a table of some sort in the middle of the circle.

"What…?"

"They are known as summoning runes." Ryu's head jerked over to the far end of the room to see a figure concealed in a red cloak.

"YOU!" Ryu yelled in surprise.

"You seem surprised, Ryu." The figure said.

"But… aren't you… the guy that I spoke to when I was at Reis?"

"Yes and no." The figure said, walking over to the table in the center of the room. Ryu walked over to the table and slammed his fists on the table.

"What is this?" Ryu growled.

"Your astral self is in an ancient temple on a world known as Ethereal. You may not remember it, but you have been here several times."

"How…"

"Because, of what you are. You a more than just a member of the Dragon Clan, Ryu. You are more than that." The man said, pointing to the runes. "Do you know what they say?"

"…no." Ryu grumbled.

"They tell of a story… one from a long time ago. Several stories, in fact. Yours mostly. But that doesn't matter right now. What matters is that you know where you are going from here."

"What does that mean?" Ryu asked.

The man laughed. "Ryu, you want to know who I am? I'm not really sure you can handle that fact yet." Ryu's eyes widened as the man removed the hood from his head. But, you have every right to know, right?"

The man looked to be about in his late thirties-early forties with dark, graying brown hair and green eyes. Eyes Ryu has seen before.

"You…" Ryu started to say, but suddenly grabbed his head in pain. The man simply stood there as Ryu collapsed to his knees, groaning in pain.

"Do you remember what happened the day that Taijkos attacked the Tao-Kokarai?" The man asked. Ryu grunted a reply. He groaned as he slowly rose to his feet. Ryu shook his head and looked at the man.

"I remember what happened. I remember being with my mother and Rena the day that Dracen appeared… looking for me… I remember everything burning… everyone dying." Ryu's eyes flashed red as he looked at the man. "Where the heck were you! Why weren't you there!" Ryu clenched his eyes shut and slammed his fists down on the table again. "WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP THEM!" Ryu screamed. "You could have stopped them! So why didn't you!" Ryu looked up, glaring at the man. "WHY WEREN'T YOU THERE WHEN WE NEEDED YOU!"

The man closed his eyes and sighed. "There is no easy way to explain this. If I have had my way, you would have never been put down in that graveyard. You would have been with you sister…" The man paused, closing his eyes. "Your mother said that it was part of your destiny that you were to be down there…"

"Destiny…" Ryu muttered bitterly. "Why didn't you stop her!"

"Ryu!" The man shot Ryu a stern look. "Don't you think I didn't try? She hid you so that no one could find you. Believe me, I tried. She would have done the same to Rena if…"

"Was it because you got to Rena first?" Ryu asked, quietly.

"By the time I got there… Valerie had already hid you. She said if you were left… 'unsealed' as she called it, Taijkos would have found you, and would have killed you. I tried to reason with her, take you off of Asparia and to another world, but she wouldn't have it. She already thought Rena was dead. She said that she didn't want to lose another child."

"So… why didn't you tell her about Rena then?" Ryu asked.

"Because… Taijkos already thought she was dead, I wasn't about to risk her life again. Even though it was wrong for Valerie to seal you, you were safe. So, I allowed for this to happen… to keep you both safe."

"Why didn't you do anything!" Ryu growled

"If I had interfered, it would have gotten Solona's attention much earlier and she would have found you and killed you."

"…" Ryu sighed. "So… what does this mean, anyway? Why bring me here?"

"To answer the questions you have… and to let you know that I just did not abandon you and your sister and mother."

"Was… that you that appeared just before I went to the Tao-Kokarai?"

"Yes, Ryu. It was me."

"Wait… then what are you? You can't be Brood."

"I am part of a race that is commonly referred to as Furyians."

"Isn't that what Solona is?" Ryu asked, leaning up against the table.

"Yes. For the most part, Furyians are a peaceful race. Powerful, but peaceful. We are like guardians, protectors. We ensure peace throughout the universe and protect those who cannot protect themselves. But that does not mean that there are those who would not abuse such power. Solona is what we refer to as a Rouge. A Furyian that has turned their back on the Order and only wishes to use their vast powers for chaos or personal gain… and in Solona's case, total universal annihilation."

"So… um…" Ryu sighed and sat down on the ground, cross-legged. "I really don't want a history lesson right now…" Ryu glanced up at the man. "So, tell me what I can call you as to not give away anything to everyone."

The man nodded. "Alright then, Ryu. My Earth name is Robert Moon. Call me that."

"Robert, huh?" Ryu said. "Fine by me."

(Forest outside of Mydi)

"What was that! Quick before the hyenas come!" Rena sang out loud from the log she was sitting on. The group had set up camp after trying to track down Nina and Dustin once again. Night was falling and according to Kane, trying to get through the woods outside of Mydi was akin to listening to Rei sing old folk songs. Translation: not a good idea.

Now, after having set up camp and gathering enough firewood to supply the Katobario army, the four decided to relax. Everyone's ideas for relaxing, however, were drastically different. Three hours ago, Manna had decided to go off into the woods, saying that she had something matter to take care of. Rena figured it was either go talk to the Professor, or get wasted. She figured the former of the two, because if it was the latter, she wanted to get wasted too. Tracking down Nina and Dustin was getting to be annoying.

Kane and Cat had also gone off into the woods. To spar, Kane had said. Rena knew better. She could already see where this was going. Kane was attached to Cat, that much was obvious. She had the feeling that those two were going to become inseparable by the time they faced Solona.

"You think so?" Rena looked up from the log she was sitting on just in time to spot the shimmering purple light form into Manna.

"I don't know. So, what did he have to say?"

"Nothing too important." Manna said as she sat down on the log next to Rena.

"What now?" Rena asked, looking up at the stars.

"We continue to try to find Dustin and Nina. Emphases on the word 'try.'" Manna said, smirking.

"I hear that Dustin and Cat are becoming really good swordsmen." Rena giggled.

"So I hear." Manna grinned. "But only time will tell if they have what it takes to defeat Solona." Manna looked up at the twin moons orbiting Asparia. Right, Kaiser?

TO BE CONTINUED…

9


	9. Chapter 9

Standard disclaimer: I don't own the series, nor do I make any money off of it.

"_Here we are, going far, to save all that we love. If we give, what we've got, we will make it through. Here we are, like a star, shining bright on your world today. We make evil go away!"_ Un Monde sans Danger, Code Lyoko A World Without Danger 

_(Somewhere in the boondocks near Laurante)_

A gentle breeze blew, moving the tall blades of grass in the meadows. A great forest, full of life, surrounded the meadow itself. With the sun shining brightly over head, the scene was full of peace and tranquility…

"Dah, dah, dah, dah, dah, dah, dah, DAHHHHHHH!" Rena 'sang' as she swung her staff around in the air.

If not for a hyperactive, blue-haired, dragoness cheering and jumping up and down in the process, spoiling the mood.

"Is that REALLY necessary?" Manna asked reverting her sword back into a staff before she strapped in back onto her back.

"Dah, dah, dah, dah, dah, dah, dah, DAHHHHHHH!" Cat laughed as she dismissed Oathkeeper.

"Yahoo, I-I beat youuuuuuuuu!" Rena laughed/sang, dancing around in what she called a 'victory pose.'

Cat grinned and spun around and gave the 'peace sign.' Kane just sat on a rock, holding his sword in his hands, and shaking his head in disbelief. He stood up and walked over to Manna. "How did I get mixed up in this again?"

"Cruel fate… I suppose…" Manna gritted her teeth as she crossed her arms in annoyance.

"This isn't karma, is it?" Kane moaned.

"I don't know. I didn't do anything to piss anyone off, last time I checked." Manna sighed.

Cat glanced over to Kane and grinned. Kane smiled slightly and walked over to Cat. "That was pretty good; how you handled yourself in battle was impressive."

"Hee, thanks." Cat grinned.

Rena and Manna glanced at each other and rolled their eyes. Manna gestured towards the woods that they were currently standing outside of, and Rena nodded. As Cat and Kane continued chatting, or as Rena put it, flirting, Manna and Rena walked off, towards the wooded area.

Rena and Manna walked deeper into the woods, until Manna stopped in front of a giant tree. Manna unstrapped her staff from her back and laid in on the ground, before turning back to the tree. Rena deattached her staff from her belt and laid it on the ground next to Manna's staff. Rena followed suit and turned around to face the giant oak tree.

Manna nodded and made a series of complex signs with her hands. She then turned back to Rena and gave her a questioning look. Rena shrugged and crossed her arms.

"The Yggdrasil, right?" Rena asked.

"Yes."

"Were you able to talk to it?"

"Yes. I asked it if anyone has passed through here. It said yes… a young man and a child. Apparently they had passed through here, but not before getting attacked by someone who said that she was a warrior of a master of ceremonies." Manna said.

"You think it's one of Solona's lackeys?" Rena asked.

"I have no doubt in my mind that it wasn't one of her people. The question now is, who passed through here?"

"Good question… Rena mused. "I wonder who they were…"

"Something tells me, I don't _want_ to know…" Manna grimaced.

"You're right…" A voice said, coming from somewhere in the treetops.

"And when were you two going to tell us you were up there?" Manna sighed in annoyance.

Two figures jumped down from the branches of the Yggdrasil. One of them was a young girl with blonde hair and dressed in a red dress. The other was a young man with brown hair and gold eyes.

"Rei and…?" Manna said, gesturing to the young girl.

"Elly." Rei said. "Manna, they are here."

"They?" Rena asked, confused.

"HECK!" Manna yelled, quickly grabbing up her staff and running back out of the woods. "People, MOVE IT!" She screamed over her shoulder.

"Huh!" Rena yelled as Rei grabbed her hand and led her after Manna. "Wait! What's going on! REI!"

_(Unknown)_

_Eyh nanoa satai?_

Cat glanced around, trying to find the source of the voice. There was a dark void all around her, swallowing up any light in the area, with the exception of the light around her. She stretched her arm outward as a white light formed in the palm of her hand. The light formed into the Oathkeeper. She swung the sword with all her might against the darkness, hoping to cut through.

All that greeted her was more darkness. Cat growled in annoyance as she took off in a quick sprint. As she started to move, something shoved into her back, causing her to fall down. She quickly jumped back up, and with Oathkeeper at the ready, prepared to fight the unseen assailant.

Another force jabbed into her ribcage, causing her to yell more in annoyance than pain. A light formed above her, a light that filled her very being with fear and anxiety. The light descended and took on the form of a dark cloaked figure. The figure walked slowly over to her, with its arm outstretched.

"What the crap!" Cat yelled, holding Oathkeeper in front of her.

_Rune Maiden… _the figure rumbled. _Why are you not dead yet? It appears that the Destined Child did not complete his mission. It appears that Solona has failed me. It appears that…_

"Shut _up_already!" Cat screamed. "I get it! You want to take me out the box! Fine, well if that's what you want, COME AND GET ME!" Cat assumed a battle stance.

_You are a naïve child. _The figure said. _You know not what you are up against. _The figure extended his hand, and formed a dark blade of energy in it. _I will slay you here and now._

"Give it up already!" Cat yelled as she charged the figure. The figure jabbed the energy blade forward, slamming it right into Cat's body. She screamed as the blade exited out her back. The figured dismissed the blade and grabbed Cat by the neck.

_Foolish child. You can't win. A pitiful human with the power of the Furyian. How Onyx thought that you would ever be able to defeat me is incredible. A pity, really. I was looking forward to an actual fight. You are nothing but…_

_AHOWE GASTE!_

Both the figure and Cat glanced over to where the source of the voice was. The darkness started to disperse. The Oathkeeper flashed and raised into the air. Another light appeared, forming into a similarly cloaked figure. This figure raised it's hand, and summoned Oathkeeper to him. Cat started to flash gold. The wound that the other had given her instantly healed. Cat felt like she was burning up. Cat guessed that she was hot because the next thing she knew, the cloaked thing had dropped her, and was rubbing his dark hand that seemed to be slightly smoking. Cat looked over at the other figure in confusion, before the figure made a jester, sending Oathkeeper right back to her. Cat grabbed the sword, and her form suddenly flashed. She was suddenly wearing a green, sleeveless robe that tied at the front with a purple ribbon. Red and green gloves were on either wrist. Red material was wrapped around her feet and held together with green ribbons. Cat looked over at the other figure. The figure just shrugged. The figure extended its hand and formed a long sword in it. The first figure growled in annoyance and reformed his energy blade. "Eha he isan…" The second figure said, smirking. 

"Eha-what?" Cat asked.

"Hope you are ready to fight." The second figure translated.

"Fight… _right_." Cat said. "This thing!"

"No. The other thing." The second figure said. He turned to the first figure. "You will fight them soon enough. But not today. For now, be gone with you."

_Are you serious! _The dark figure laughed. _You cannot harm me. It's against the rules._

"…" The second figure brought his sword forward. "Aija ati noe riva taksi!" The sword and the figure flashed bright gold and the figure charged the dark thing.

_What!_

"Cat, get back!" The second figure yelled.

Cat jumped back and held her hands forward, forming a light shield around her. The man jumped up in the air and lunged down at the dark figure.

"FINAL JUDGMENT!" The figure screamed as his blade made contact with the dark thing. The dark figure screamed and dispersed.

The figure dismissed his sword and fell to his knees, winded. Cat cautiously walked over and knelt down next to the man. Cat placed her arm around the man's shoulder, and helped him stand up.

"Foolish move." The man said.

Cat glared at the man. "What is this! Why am I here?"

"That _thing _called you here… your mind anyway. It's trying to gain control of you. If I hadn't showed up, it would have. If you had lost here, it would have won and you would currently be its slave, like Ryu was."

"Ryu…" Cat muttered. "Hey! What do you know about him anyway!"

"He's fine." The man said. "He is traveling with some people right now."

"That's good." Cat said. "Rena will be happy to know that."

"Right." The man said as he started to walk away from Cat.

"Hey!" Cat yelled, causing the man to look back.

"Yes?"

"Who are you?"

"Now Cat…" The man pulled back his hood, revealing a man with dark brown hair. Cat's jaw dropped. "You of all people should know the answer to that question."

"R--r-- Professor Moon!" Cat gaped. "What the heck!"

_(Outside of the woods)_

"HUH!" Cat yelled as she was suddenly brought back to reality. She realized she must have fallen asleep. She shook her head. Did she just have a dream about some_thing _attacking her and Rena's father showing up to save her? And _what _was with that outfit she was in.

"Kane?" Cat looked up from the log she was sitting on. The man in question was pacing around a nearby tree, with a pensive look on his face.

"Huh?" Kane glanced over at Cat. "Yeah?"

Cat sighed and walked over to Kane. Kane smiled slightly, then frowned when he saw the depressed look on Cat's face. Kane tilted his head and walked over to meet Cat halfway. Cat looked down at the ground, before looking up at Kane and staring at him. Kane placed a hand on her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" Kane asked.

"Why is this happening?" Cat asked quietly.

"Huh?" Kane looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"All of this… the fighting… everything." Cat sighed. "Why?"

"I…don't know." Kane said.

"I… had a dream. It was about some thing wanting to control me… or kill me. I'm not really sure." Cat said shakily.

"Cat…" Kane sighed. Much to Cat's surprise, he gently embraced her. Cat looked up at him, her cheeks slightly flushed.

"Kane…?"

Kane buried his face into the nape of Cat's neck. "I promise I won't let anything happen to you." He murmured. "I said that I would protect you, and that's what I am going to do."

"Kane." Cat smiled slightly as she laid her head on his chest.

"I promise that I won't anything happen to you." Kane smiled, holding Cat at arm's length. "We'll bright peace to this world, and defeat the Master of Ceremonies and her minions."

"Right! Though you realize just how corny that sounded, right?" Cat snickered.

"Hmph." Kane said, releasing Cat. "I wasn't that bad."

"Yes. Yes, you were." Cat laughed and Kane continued to scowl.

"Right well anyway. We should go look for Manna and find out what our current situation is."

"Okay." Cat said as she turned around to walk into the woods.

Kane grinned as he started after her, then stopped. His smile slowly faded as he quickly glanced up in the trees. He shook his head and started off after Cat.

"_KANE!"_ Kane stopped in his tracks as he heard a familiar voice scream out his name. He quickly glanced around, trying to find the source of the voice. _"HECK! MOVE IT!"_ The voice screamed louder as a woman with silver hair and was dressed in black leather jumped down from the trees.

"Are you Kane Lokhart?" The woman asked, drawing a board sword with a skull on the hilt of the blade.

"Who want's to know?" Kane asked, drawing out his long sword. "Who the heck are you suppose to be?"

"_KANE! GET OUT OF HERE!"_ The voice screamed again.

"Huh?" Kane looked around again. The woman smirked.

"I am the Sword Princess. That's all you need to know."

"Kane?" Cat called from somewhere in the woods. "What's going on?"

"The Rune Maiden?" The Sword Princess asked. "Finally, a lead!" The woman took off in the direction of the woods, and spotted Cat.

"Huh…?" Cat yelled as the woman brought her sword up and struck at Cat. Cat quickly dodged it, and summoned Oathkeeper. The woman lunged at Cat again, but Cat blocked the attack.

"LIGHTENING!" Another voice screamed, as a bolt of lightning struck Cat in the back. Cat screamed and fell as a woman with long black hair, dressed in a black dress walked forward.

"Time to finish you off now." The woman said as she raised her arm and formed another lightning bolt. "Light-- huh!"

The mighty roar of a dragon suddenly cut off the woman. A large, black scaled dragon hovered above the woman that was about to attack Cat. The dragon roared again and swung down, knocking the woman over with it's tail.

Cat quickly got back up and held Oathkeeper at the ready. The dragon landed right beside of Cat and slammed it's tail into the ground and roared. Cat grinned as she looked up at the dragon.

"Hi Kane."

The dragon roared in response and flapped its wings, taking off into the air again. Dragon-Kane drew in air, preparing for a devastating breath attack. Cat looked up just in time to notice some man dressed in black armor leap from the trees and land on Kane's back. The dragon didn't have time to react as the man summoned a spear to his hand…

Nor did he have time to react as the man jumped back into the air and slammed the spear between his shoulder blades, and out his chest. The man jumped down and landed on the ground as the dark dragon let out a strangled cry and fell towards the ground, starting to revert back to his human form.

Cat screamed as she saw Kane falling towards the ground. The man that had ran him through grinned and turned to Cat, as the other two turned to her as well. Kane hit the ground with a force strong enough to shatter bone. Blood started to stain the ground where he laid. Cat growled as her eye's flashed gold.

"No!" Cat yelled, as she tried to run over to Kane. The man jumped in front of Cat, halting her movement.

"You will not pass, Rune Maiden." He smirked.

"Let me PASS!" Cat screamed. "KANE!"

"Die!" The man yelled, shoving the spear forward, right at Cat. Cat tried to block the attack with the Oathkeeper, but the spear caused the sword to shatter on impact. A shocked expression appeared on Cat's face as the sword dissolved in her hands.

Cat's eyes flashed gold as her form started to shake. Cat screamed as she raised her hands in the air. Gold light formed in them, taking on the form of what appeared to be a sword. The sword was long sword with a white blade and a silver hilt with two sets of "wings" making up the hilt with blue runic designs running along the hilt and blade.

Cat screamed again as the light once again consumed her form. When the light died down, she was suddenly wearing a green, sleeveless robe that tied at the front with a purple ribbon. Red and green gloves were on either wrist. Red material was wrapped around her feet and held together with green ribbons.

Cat raised the sword in the air and hit the spear, causing it to break into two. The man jumped back, an annoyed look on his face. Cat growled. "Tie rteka tehej!" Cat's eyes widened in shock.

"Ahe iteh!"

Cat pushed passed the man and quickly ran over to Kane's immobile form. "Kane…" Cat whispered as she knelt next to Kane. She gently raised his head to meet hers. "Wake up… please…" Cat shook Kane. "Kane…?"

Cat grabbed Kane's wrist desperately. She fought back a sob, as she didn't feel a pulse. "No… please… don't die!"

"Oh, no!" Cat looked over at the entrance of the woods. Manna, Rena, Rei, and Elly stood there, with their respective weapons at the ready.

"We're too late…" Rei muttered darkly.

TO BE CONTINUED…


	10. Chapter 10

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Breath of Fire.

AN: Yet another chapter :) and I finished it in two days, too! Hey Cat, nice work on the Timeline chapter. Oh, and Shadow, nice work on Illusions!

_"I won't forget the pain I've felt that day. I never want to return to that place more stronger. I want to believe in the light I've found that day because there is one promise that I've exchanged with you I want to continue walking without stopping."_

_True,_ Dragon Drive

A Song of Storm and Fire

_(The boonies of Laurante)_

"God, NO!" Rena screamed as she watched Cat frantically shaking Kane's shoulders. The dark dragon made no noise or a reaction to the brunette's frantic gestures.

Rena turned to Manna. Manna glanced over at the three Warriors as they started to advance on Kane and Cat. Manna's eyes flashed gold and her form was enveloped in a violet light. When the light died down, Manna's clothes had changed. She was dressed in a white gown with a blue and gold crisscross design that looped from the top front of the dress to about her waist with a gold ring on the front of the dress that had blue strips of fabric hanging down the lower part of her dress. Gold armbands on her upper arms with the same blue material attached to them.

Manna jumped forward quickly and jumped between Kane, Cat, and the warriors. She swung her staff forward. Solona's warriors stopped in their tracks and looked over at Manna. Manna smirked as the tip of the staff glowed violet. She held the staff out in front of her at an angle.

"You will not pass." Manna said simply.

Payne grinned. "The mighty summoner is going to fight us now?" She asked, laughing lightly. Payne brought her sword forward as Luna and Orion stood on either side of the Sword Princess.

"You will not PASS!" Manna growled.

"We will see about that, summoner." Luna muttered. "Lightning!" 

Lightning arched from Luna's hands and struck at Manna's feet. Manna simply stood there as Luna hurled bolt after bolt of lightning at the purple-haired summoner. Manna simply kept swinging her staff and blocked each bolt of lightning. Luna growled and stepped forward. She formed a surge of lightning in her hands, and hurled it at Kane and Cat. Manna held up her hand.

"Shield us from thunder's bane!" Manna roared, a yellow and white light shield forming over the two.

"So, the gloves finally come off, eh Manna?" Orion asked. "You will fight us now at your peak level?"

Manna snorted. "Just because I used a simple level one shield, does not mean that I am going to fight you at my 'peak level.' It merely means that I am not going to allow you to harm neither Cat nor Kane."

_(Meanwhile)_

Rena, Rei, and Elly watched as Manna took another step towards Solona's servants. Rena watched as the three warriors grimaced, and took a step back. Manna smirked as a pair of iridescent wings formed from her back. Manna's entire form glowed with an ethereal violet light. 

Rena watched as Luna frowned and took a step off to the side, away from the confrontation. Rena frowned and slipped away from Rei and Elly. Elly looked up in time to see Rena walk off. Elly tugged at Rei's sleeve and pointed at Rena. Rei shook his head and cautiously followed after Rena, Elly close behind.

Rena whipped her staff around and spread out her draconic wings and jumped up into the air. She silently followed after Luna, as the mage made her way over to a group of trees that were several feet away from where Cat and Kane were currently kneeling.

Luna turned her head and spotted Rena in the air. Rena yelled out a battle cry and dove down at Luna, the staff ready to knock her upside the head. Luna smirked slightly and held up her hand. Rena screamed as tendrils of energy wrapped around her body and wings. Immobile, Rena fell from the air and landed a few feet from Luna.

"Nice try, white mage, but you can't stop me. The very environment tells me that you were going to attack me. The wind, the trees, everything."

"Shut up!" Rena growled trying to undo the binds on her body.

"RENNIE!" Rena and Luna looked over to see Elly and Rei running over to the two.

Luna rolled her eyes and made a gesture with her hand. A strong torrent of wind knocked Rei and Elly back up against the trees. Luna made a gesture with her hand, causing her and Rena to vanish in a plume of light.

"Crap!" Rei screamed, catching the attention of Manna and the others.

"What happened!" Manna yelled.

"Luna has Rena!" Elly screamed.

"What!" Cat yelled.

"Kill them!" Payne screamed as she and Orion charged.

"They plan to separate the group!" Manna yelled over to Elly and Rei. "Rei, go after Rena. Elly, go help Kane!"

Elly nodded as she took off into a sprint to Kane and Cat. Rei shook his head and vanished. Manna cracked her knuckles as Payne and Orion advanced on her. 

"Please…" Manna grinned evilly. "What makes you think that you can take ME on and win?"

"We will rend you to pieces!" Payne screamed as she lunged forward, her sword arched over her head.

"Child's play!" Manna yelled, jumping up in the air and using Payne's sword as a springboard, she back-flipped and kicked Payne upside the head.

"Round two." Manna grinned.

_(Near Cat and Kane)_

Elly ran as fast as she could. Kane was dying, that much was for certain. Since he was a dragon, he would be able to hang on for a moment, but not for long. Elly knew that healing Kane would give herself away, but she had no choice. It was either reveal herself, or let Kane die.

She wasn't about to let the dark dragon die. He was too important to Cat. Van told her as much. Elly sneaked around and approached the two from behind. Manna was distracting Orion and Payne, so she would have some time to do this, but not a lot of time.

"Cat…" Elly said.

Cat turned around and looked at the young child. Elly smiled sadly and walked over to Kane and her and knelt down. "I am going to heal him now, but…"

"Yeah…?" Cat asked, tears running down her eyes as her voice cracked.

"…You can't tell anyone what you are about to see, okay?" Elly said as a light enveloped her.

When the light died down, in place of the hyperactive six-year-old, was someone else. Elly looked around 12 or 13 years old, and had pinkish blond hair. She was dressed in a pink, short skirt-dress with a white, long sleeved shirt underneath the dress. a pink corset was around her waist. She was wearing black leggings with pink flowers on them, as well as pink shoes and pink bracers. 

"What…?" Cat asked, looking up at Elly.

"I am going to heal him now…" Elly said, her voice having taken on a more mature sound to it.

Elly placed her hands on Kane's chest and fazed through it. She let loose a bolt of energy as Kane's body started to spasm in pain. Kane screamed as Elly did that over and over again. Finally, Kane's heat started to beat on it's own, frantic and labored. Cat saw Elly take her hand out of Kane's chest. She also saw Kane's heart beating so fast, that she could see hammering through his chest. Elly placed her hand on Kane's chest again.

Cat watched as she saw a white light form over Kane's chest. The light covered the wounds and they quickly healed. Elly took her hands from Kane's chest as it began to rise and fall with each breath he took. Kane's eyes flashed open as he quickly shot up into a sitting position.

Cat smiled as she wiped back her tears as Elly moaned, holding her head. Kane looked at Cat and smiled, and then turned to Elly.

"Thanks." Kane said. 

"No problem." Elly smiled.

"Now, Elly." Cat said, turning to the young woman. "Please explain why you were able to change your form."

Elly stood up and dusted off her dress. "Later. Now, we go and help Manna kick some ass and get some serious payback."

Kane nodded in agreement as he and Cat stood up. Kane and Cat grabbed their swords as the three ran off in the direction they heard Manna screaming out spells and battle cries and Payne and Orion just swearing.

_(Somewhere in the woods)_

"So, you are the one..." Luna grinned. 

Rena was currently floating a few feet in the air, right in front of Luna, still bound by the tendrils of energy. Luna walked up to Rena and placed her hand over Rena's heart. Rena gave Luna a horrified look as Luna closed her eyes.

"You're heartbeat is different than the titan's was. His was frantic, erratic. Your heartbeat is calm, rhythmic. Do you not fear me?"

Luna opened her eyes and looked at Rena. Rena glared back at Luna. "You refuse to answer me. That's fine. This will make this much more fun then."

"Get your hands off of me, you…" Rena growled, but was cut short as she saw Luna's hand fazing through her chest. 

Rena made a choking sound and coughed up blood as she felt Luna's hand wrap around her heart. "The heart of a dragon. Of course, you would not show fear to your enemy. But, I will make you know pain beyond imagination."

"Get… get off of me!" Rena screamed as she felt Luna lightly squeeze her heart.

"Your heart…" Luna grinned. "Yes. Of course, you know what would happen if I squeezed it any harder than what I was already doing, right?"

Luna grinned as she squeezed Rena's heart hard. Rena screamed as her eyes widened in fear and pain. Luna twisted her hand and dug her fingernails into Rena's heart. Rena made a series of noises and started to gasp for air.

"Yes… show me that fear. The fear that you feel when you know that you cannot escape." Luna said as she felt Rena's heart beat at an erratic pace. "Yes. Now it is racing. What does it feel like?"

Rena continued to scream in pain as Luna twisted her heart in her chest. Luna quickly pulled her hand out of Rena's chest. Rena gasped, barely able to catch her breath. Luna made a gesture with her hand and Rena's body floated to the ground.

"Will your knight come and save you now?" Luna asked, kneeling right beside Rena.

"You…" Rena growled, but her breath caught in her throat as she felt Luna fazed her hand through Rena's chest again.

"Now, let's try something different now, shall we?" Luna smirked as she squeezed Rena's heart again. "Yes, how much longer will you be able to last?"

Rena's eyes rolled back in her head as she continued to scream. "I can feel your heart trying so hard to keep beating. But, it's for naught. I can feel your plodding heartbeat against my hand as it continues to drift into nothingness. I can…"

"GET OFF OF HER!" Luna looked up to see Rei standing amongst the trees, his daggers already drawn and ready to use.

"Pity." Luna grinned. "One hard squeeze and she'd dead. You know?"

"RENA!" Rei screamed. "Can you hear me!" Rei shook his head and bolted over to the two. He saw that Luna's hand was fazed through Rena's chest. He saw that Rena's breathing had become labored and was dwindling with each passing moment.

"Why her!" Rei snapped, his eyes flashing red. 

"Her father is my mistress' enemy." Luna simply replied. She squeezed Rena's heart hard again. She could feel the muscle exhaustingly beat against her hand. Rena's breath slowed down even more. Her heart pounded furiously. Luna sighed and squeezed it again, causing Rena's heart to pound even harder.

"Try and save her, if you wish, but there's nothing you can do now." Luna said as she jerked her hand out of Rena's chest. Rena made a weak noise.

Rei quickly ran over to Rena and placed his hand over Rena's chest. He felt her heat beat furiously in her chest. Rei realized she was going into cardiac arrest. He glared up at Luna. "If she dies, I will kill you!" Rei growled.

Rei then turned back to Rena. The young dragon was convulsing violently as she fought to breathe. Rei nodded and placed both hands over Rena's chest. She had saved him three months earlier. He was not able to let her die on him now. Not after everything they had been through. 

"She's as good as dead." Luna laughed. "Besides, what good are chest compressions when she is having a heart attack?" 

Rei said nothing as he tilted Rena's head back and opened her mouth. He placed his mouth over her's and took a deep breath and forced air into her lungs. He did that a couple of times, then placed his hands over Rena's chest again. He could feel her heart slowing to a stop as he started to pump her chest over and over again.

"Give it up, titan." Luna said, but Rei ignored her.

"Rennie, please!" Rei cried out as he continued to pump Rena's chest. "Don't die on me!  
"  
"She is… what!" Luna choked as she saw a red cloaked figure appear behind Rei and Rena. Rei didn't even notice. He let out a frustrated cry as he felt Rena's heart beat once more, then stopped.

The wind began to pick up around the cloaked figure. Luna could sense that the man was angry. Anger that was directed at her for harming the child. Rei let out a cry of anger as he shook his head in denial. He started to pump Rena's chest frantically over and over again. The cloaked man shot out a lance of energy at Luna. Luna smirked as she took a step back and vanished.

"Rennie… no…" Rei cried as he stopped pumping her chest and hung his head in defeat. He leaned over Rena's body and started shaking. The man walked over to Rei and the proned Rena and knelt down.

"Do you want to save her?" The man asked, his voice neutral.

"Don't… touch her…" Rei choked out as he drew Rena's body closer to his.

"I am not here to harm you… or her…" the man said. "There is a way to save her…"

"How!" Rei cried.

"Lay her back down." The man said.

Rei laid Rena back down. The man placed his hand over Rena's chest. He pressed down, fazing his hand through Rena's chest, just as Luna had done. Rei gave the man a bewildered look as the man let loose a bolt of energy. Rena's body contorted. Her head arched back as she let out a deafening scream.

"STOP!" Rei screamed, but the man silenced him with his other hand.

The man let loose another bolt of energy as Rena's body continued to spasm in pain. Rena kept screaming as the man did that over and over again. Finally, Rena's heat started to beat on it's own, frantic and labored. Rei saw the man take his hand out of Rena's chest. He also saw Rena's heart beating so fast, that he could see hammering through her chest. The man placed his hand on Rena's chest again. Rei was about to protest, saying that Rena was in enough pain, but any protests died on his lips as he saw a white light form over Rena's chest.

The light seeped into Rena's chest. Rei noticed that Rena had stopped jerking and her breathing had returned to normal. The man felt Rena's heartbeat return to a rhythmic pulse. He nodded and picked Rena up as he and Rei both stood. The man handed Rena to Rei.

"She's alive… but she's not completely healed yet. Please, don't let anything happen to her." The man said as he started to turn and walk away.

"What the heck!" Rei yelled. "What…! Are you just walking away!"

"I am not allowed to interfere." The man said. "But Solona had gone to far. I was not about to let her die… neither one of them…"

"Neither one…?" Rei asked.

" 'Elly' has healed Kane. Something very simple, apparently… Solona wanted to kill Kane because he is protecting Cat. She wants to kill Rena and Ryu because…" The man just shook his head. "Go, and protect Rena with your life. If I find out that she has died while in your care, I will kill you Jaren…"

And with that, the man walked off, leaving a confused Rei holding an unconscious Rena. Rei looked down at Rena as he heard her murmur something. He watched as she chest rose and fell with each breath. He placed his hand on Rena's chest and felt the rhythmic beat of her heart.

Rei choked back a sob and shook his head. He walked back towards the others.

_(Where Manna is fighting Orion and Payne)_

Manna's head snapped up just as she easily dodged another jab from Orion. She looked over to her left to see Kane, Cat, and Elly running up to the fight. She nodded and then gave the two a really big grin.

"Now, it's time to finish this, eh?" Manna said, causing Orion and Payne to stop in their tracks. They were having enough of a time just trying to keep up with the summoner. Now, she was saying that she was going to finish it up?

"Orion!" Payne desperately cried when she saw the other three coming up the hill. All three had looks of anger and malice on their faces.

Manna looked over at Elly and Cat, and grinned. "Okay! Time for a lesson in spell casting! Elly, if you please!"

Elly grinned and turned to Cat. "Repeat this after me!" She then turned to Manna. "Ready!" 

Cat nodded and looked at Manna then Elly. "Aija ati noe riva taksi!" Cat, Elly, and Manna screamed in unison. Kane looked confused as Payne and Orion took a step back. They knew what was coming. "FINAL JUDGEMENT!" The three girls screamed together.

A huge wave of pure energy rushed from the girls and engulfed the rouge Furyians. They screamed and vanished. Manna and the others quickly ran up to each other and cheered. Manna looked at Elly and sighed. 

"Elehayym…" Manna muttered.

"Lady Manna." Elly bowed at the waist. She righted herself and grinned. "Van said that you would be needing my help."

"I know…" Manna muttered through gritted teeth.

"Van?" Kane asked. 

"Dragon Drive… right?" Cat asked, earning her a rare, bewildered stare from Manna.

"How…? Wait! Never mind!" Manna muttered darkly as she took out a flask and took the lid off. She quickly took a drink from the flask, then recapped the bottle and placed it back in the pouch on her belt. She dug around in her other pouch and pulled out a long, thin white stick and lit the thing up with a lighter.

"Is that a cigarette?" Cat asked in disapproval.

Kane laughed and then quickly stopped. He quickly turned to Elly and looked her over once. He noticed that her eyes were green. The same shade of green as Rena and Ryu's. "Are you…"

"Long story." Elly sighed. All four turned their attention to the woods as they saw Rei coming into view, Rena held protectively in his arms.

"What happened!" Cat yelled in confusion.

"Luna tried to kill Rena." Rei said, his eyes slightly red from where he had tried to fight the tears that still threaten to spill out.

"Is she okay?" Manna asked. "Rei… what happened?"

"Luna killed Rena…" Rei muttered darkly as he started to choke. Rei was still shaking very hard. Kane came over and took Rena from Rei.

"She seems like she's fine to me." Kane said.

"I… I couldn't… she just wouldn't…" Rei balled his hands into fists and held them at his sides, shaking.

"Rei." Manna said sharply. "What. Happened?"

"A guy… this… guy in a red cloak came and… healed her…" Rei finally said. "I don't know who he is… or what he was doing here…"

"Saving Rena." Elly said. Rei looked over at Elly for the first time. "Who…?"

"Elly." Elly said. "My true form. Come, we must now go to Reis before what happened to Rena, happens to Ryu." 

Everyone nodded. As everyone started to leave, Kane turned to Cat. Cat looked at Kane and choked back a sob. Kane smiled at Cat. Cat nodded.

"Rena's… everything's okay… right?" Cat asked, as she looked at Rena.

"She's breathing okay. But, her heartbeat feels erratic, labored. Whatever happened, it will probably take it's toll on Rena before this quest is over with." 

"Well… we just can't let that happen, right?" Cat said. "We'll protect Rena. And make sure she gets home in one piece."

"Right." Kane said. "And I will protect you, Cat. Until the end of time."

Cat smirked. "Enough with the clichés, dragon-boy."

"I thought that Ryu was the dragon-boy." Kane grinned.

"You are the only male dragon here. Now, let's go!" Cat laughed as she ran off.

_(Unknown)_

"Guardian." Zeke looked up to see a red cloaked figure standing behind him. They were currently standing in what appeared to be in what seemed to be a temple of some short… or so he thought. Torches aligned along the walls suddenly shot to life, brightening the room. Runic symbols were painted all over the walls and the ceiling. He noticed a large, detailed runic symbol in the center of the floor, with a table of some sort in the middle of the circle.

"Onyx." The former Guardian said. "Why have you come?"

"The mission that Vin Sphere gave you." Onyx said. "You now must go complete it." 

"Who is the one that I am suppose to protect?" Zeke asked.

"A child. Her name is Kagumi."

To be continued…

12


	11. Chapter 11

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Breath of Fire.

_"First we touch, and we hurt each other, then we tear our hearts apart. We are too close and I can feel the pain fill my empty heart. Is this pain too much for me? Can I stay the same? When this pain consumes my heart, will I be able to hold on to my soul?"_

_Pain,_ Xenosaga

Fatal Fight

_(Inn in Synterra)_

Rena screamed. Her heart was pounding furiously in her chest. She could barely tell, but she thought she was going into cardiac arrest. She felt like she was on fire. Her skin was flushed with what she thought was a fever. Her breathing came out in sharp gasps. Rena was trapped in an inferno, the fires encasing her body and burning her.

She tried to see through the haze of the pain, but was unable to. She cried out, reaching out to grab onto anything that would make sense of all of it. She grabbed her chest in pain and clutched it tightly as she felt her heartbeat.

Rena let loose a strangled cry as her ears throbbed with the sounds of her amplified heartbeat. Her heart pounded in time with the pounding in her head. She felt something over her chest. Her heart pounded furiously again the thing on her chest. She felt the pressure and screamed loudly.

She gasped for air, desperate to fill her deflated lungs. She started choking on her own blood as she fell to her side. She just laid there, panting and gasping for air. She left someone turn her onto her back. She then felt something cool and damp being placed on her forehead.

Rena moaned as her vision started to focus. She blinked and looked up into the eyes of Kane. Rena realized she was lying on her back in a bed. Rena felt cold air on her chest and realized that her clothes had been taken off. She was covered up in a blanket up to her chest. She noticed that she was in some sort of brown-colored room.

The sun shown brightly through the windows, indicating that it was probably noon. A dresser was against the far corner with a mirror attached to it. A bowl of water was sitting on top of it. Kane was sitting in a wooden chair right next to Rena's bed.

Rena noticed Kane take the damp cloth off of her forehead and get up from the chair. He walked over to the dresser and placed the cloth into the bowl. He then took the wet rag out and rung it out. He walked back over to Rena and sat back down. He placed the cloth back on Rena's head.

"Think she'll be okay?" Rena heard Cat ask.

"Good question." Kane replied. "Her eyes are open, but they are glazed over. It could be like it was a few days ago. It could just be another fever dream, and her opening her eyes be another unconscious reflex." 

"True." Cat said as she came into Rena's line of sight. 

Cat was dressed in a pair of black, short shorts and a black halter-top. She was wearing a pair of black, steel-toed boots and a pink and purple, long-sleeved jacket. She looked down at Rena and sighed.

"Any change?"

Kane shook his head. "Her heart is still in extreme duress. Sometimes it will start beating furiously in her chest to the point you think she will have another massive heart attack. Other times it is barely beating in her chest at all. I had to give her chest compressions twice already because her heart completely gave out."

Did he just say that her heart stopped? A massive heart attack? When did this happen?

Then, Rena remembered. She remembered Luna placing her hand on her chest and feeling her heart beat. She also remembered Luna fazing her hand through her chest and her fingers wrapping around her heart. She remembered Luna squeezing her heart and twisting it around in her chest.

Rena felt Kane place his hand on her chest. "Her heartbeat still feels agitated. Her fever can't be helping things at all. I just hope the infection hasn't spread to her heart." 

"Furyians have natural healing abilities." Cat said. "But what I don't get is why Rena didn't just spring back from this? I mean, she's a white mage. Couldn't she just heal herself?" 

"From what Manna told me, Rena's heart was completely stopped. She could have been declared clinically dead. It was because of that one guy that Rena's still alive." Kane said.

"He jumpstarted her heart." Cat said. She looked at Rena. "It wasn't suppose to be like this. No one was suppose to get hurt." 

"Sometimes… things just happen." Kane said.

Rena screamed out in agony and jerked her arm into the air. Kane took her hand and lowered it. Rena's chest started to rise and fall rapidly with each shaky breath she drew. Rena choked and jerked her head around wildly. She tried to get into a sitting position, but Kane pushed her back down on to the bed.

"Rena?" Kane asked, slightly surprised.

"Nhh…" Rena gasped, her heart racing with the effort she just put into trying to sit up. She clutched her chest, trying to will her heart to slow down. Her heart continued to throb violently in her chest, then slowed down slightly. 

"You awake?" Cat asked hopefully.

"Re… ne…. ah…" Rena moaned as her eyes squinted shut. Kane took the cloth that had fallen off of Rena's forehead and placed it over her eyes. Rena let out a sigh and calmed down.

"Rena?" Kane asked again.

"Ka…ne…" Rena moaned. "Ca……"

"We're right here." Cat said as she sat down on the edge of the bed. 

Rena nodded weakly. "Wha…?"

"Luna caused you to go into cardiac arrest three days ago." Kane said. "You had a massive heart attack. Rei said that you would have died if not for some guy showing up and restarting your heart."

"M…mas…ive…he…" Rena gasped.

"Yeah." Cat said. "You were unconscious when Rei brought you back over to us. Your breathing was fine, but your heart was pumping really hard in your chest. Your heart soon gave out again and Kane had to give you chest compressions to restart your heart."

"You soon developed a dangerously high fever. Manna said it was from where Luna collapsed your heart. Your body couldn't handle it and basically shut down. Elly said that there was a place close by that had a healer so we went there. We're in Synterra right now. She said that she had some friends here that were going to come and pick us up in a…" Kane trailed off.

"Air ship." Cat giggled. "They were going to fly us to Reis. But we couldn't move with you in the condition that you were in. So, we were waiting until you got better."

Rena nodded weakly. "Okay." Rena said as her breathing became more regular. "Thanks…"

"You're our friend. We weren't about to let you die." Cat said.

"Try to get some rest." Kane said. "Hopefully, you'll feel better in the morning."

_(Author doesn't really even know where they are… okay, they are somewhere out in the Arad Desert…)_

"So, can you tell me HOW a giant bird can fly around and carry people on it's back?" The young cat-girl, Anna asked as she and the others were walking through the desert.

She had changed into a sleeveless green, laced up shirt and a pair of brown shorts. Her gun holster was attached to her upper thigh.

Sure, it seems like a good idea at the time. Dustin called himself the G-O-D. A god. Surely he could help her get home. Not so fast though. She soon realized that even though Dustin was a god, he was completely clueless when it came to machinery and how to get her home.

The bird girl wasn't helping matters either. She would just keep glaring daggers at her if she so much as talked to Dustin. Anna had to admit that Dustin was rather unique. Only someone such as himself could walk around the desert in a black shirt, black baggy pants, and black boots, and not suffer from heat stroke.

The child was fine. The kid didn't talk. That was also fine. Anna just wanted to get off of that forsaken world and go home. No dice.

"And there!" Dustin yelled, pointing the Oblivion over next to an ancient looking pyramid. "SHADE!"

Nina yelled in excitement as she and Kagumi ran over to the shaded area and sat down in exhaustion. Anna walked over to Dustin.

"So, exactly where are we?" Anna asked Dustin.

"Dunno." 

"Great, that helps."

Nina looked over at the two and sighed. It was just like how she and Ryu acted when they first met. She wondered if the two had a thing for each other. Kagumi made a whimpering noise and grabbed Nina's arm.

Nina looked up in confusion and saw a black cloaked figure come walking up. Nina stood up and placed herself between Kagumi and the person. The person took their hood off to reveal a woman with long black hair.

"You do not know me." The woman said as Kagumi gripped Nina's waist. "I am Luna Zandati. I am a warrior of the Master of Ceremonies." 

Nina growled as she drew her rapier and pointed it at Luna. "I will not allow you to harm Kagumi!"

"Foolish child." Luna said as Nina and Kagumi suddenly felt paralyzed. Nina dropped her rapier as Luna made a gesture with her hand and sent Nina flying. She floated Kagumi over to her.

Kagumi's eyes widen in fear as Luna placed her hand on Kagumi's chest. "You see, there are certain individuals in existence that can actually harm my mistress. For some odd reason, you are labeled as one of those individuals." Luna felt Kagumi's heart pump furiously in her chest. "You are scared." Luna grinned.

She fazed her hand through Kagumi's chest and laced her fingers around her heart. Kagumi's eyes bulged in her head as she screamed, catching the attention of both Anna and Dustin. The two came running over, but stopped in mid-run as they saw what Luna was doing to Kagumi.

"One false move, and I will crush her heart!" Luna yelled. Kagumi choked and coughed up blood as Luna gently squeezed her heart. "Unlike the other girl, your cannot survive such punishment dealt to it."

She squeezed Kagumi's heart hard again. She could feel the muscle laboriously beat against her hand. Kagumi's breath slowed down even more. Her heart pounded furiously. Luna sighed and squeezed it again, causing Kagumi's heart to pound even harder.

Kagumi cried in pain. Kagumi's heart throbbed painfully in her chest as she realized that she was going to go into cardiac arrest if Luna didn't stop. 

Dustin growled and leapt forward, holding Oblivion high in the air. He charged Luna. Luna turned to him and knocked Dustin back with a wind spell. Nina got over her paralysis and grabbed up her sword.

"DUSTIN!" Nina cried as Dustin stood up. "WITH ME!"

Both bolted over to Luna as the mage shot another wave of wind at them. "IRONREAVER!" Nina screamed, her sword cutting through the waves and dispersing them.

Dustin gave Luna a feral grin as he ran right up on Luna and sliced the hand off that was holding Kagumi. Kagumi fell to the ground, convulsing violently. Luna raised her hand to strike Dustin, but her other hand was sliced off with the blade of a halberd.

"Vile woman!" A deep voice rumbled. Luna looked up and nearly had a heart attack. There, standing before her was an amber-skinned gargoyle with a righteously pissed off look on his face.

Luna jerked back as blood oozed from her hands. The gargoyle! She looked at the prayer beads around the beast's check. Luna moaned. The beast was a Guardian! Luna jumped back, then felt a gun being pressed against her back.

"Don't move, chicken crap." Anna growled, pressing the gun into Luna's back harder.

"KAGUMI!" Nina yelled as she ran over to the young child. Kagumi was lying prone on the ground, gasping for air. Nina placed her hand on Kagumi's chest and frowned. Her frail heartbeat was ebbing down into nothingness in her chest.

"You…" Luna growled. She turned to see Dustin and Garr pointing their weapons at her. She sighed as vanished.

Garr dismissed his halberd as he and Dustin rushed over to Nina and Kagumi. Anna knelt down next to Kagumi and placed her hands on her chest. "Luna must have damaged her heart." Anna said. "Her heart is going to stop beating if we don't do something now."

Anna placed both hands on Kagumi and started to pump her chest over and over again. The child's eyes rolled back in her head as her breathing became labored. Garr walked over to them and knelt down.

"May I try?" Garr asked, gaining a bewildered look from Nina.

"What… can YOU do?" Nina asked in surprise. "I thought that you weren't a healer…"

"I am not." Garr admitted. "But, you are. I can amplify your healing powers and heal this child."

Nina nodded as Anna stopped pumping Kagumi's chest. Kagumi's chest arched in pain as Nina placed her hands over Kagumi's heart. Nina felt Kagumi's heart plop weakly in her chest. Garr placed his hands on Nina's shoulder. Nina started the chant for the healing spell as she felt Garr's strength flow into her. Suddenly, she was bombarded with a series of images.

She saw a woman with long purple hair and iridescent wings, holding a staff. She saw a woman with silver hair, dressed in a white gown, holding a sword and standing off against a dark foe. She saw two warriors, each holding a sword as they stood with another warrior, this one holding his sword high at an arch. She saw a young man with spiky blond hair, standing with a man in black, metallic armor. The man had a dragon's mask over his face.

She saw Myria standing before the blond haired man. The man had with him a buster sword, and was dressed in gold and white metallic armor. She saw a young girl with blondish-pink hair, now standing with the man in black armor. She saw the silver-haired woman and the two warriors fighting the dark foe. She saw Kagumi's body lying lifelessly on a stone altar.

She saw countless other warriors, shadowed, facing off against the dark foes. She saw a fierce battle being waged. She saw the armored, masked man sword fighting again another man with long, black hair. She saw the blond-haired man standing back to back with another man. This man also had blond hair, but his was in a braid that fell to his shoulders and he was dressed in a black outfit and a red trench coat. 

She saw as a woman with gold hair rush to wear the masked man was fighting. She was the foe strike the woman through the heart with his sword. She saw the two men turn around just as the foe struck the masked man through the heart with his sword. She saw the palace where they were at being burned. She saw the spiky blond haired man rush forward and strike the armored man. She saw as the armored man sliced off the other man's leg and arm.

She then saw nothingness. 

She was standing on an astral plane, alone. She saw the winged woman from the vision approach her. Nina recognized the woman as Manna.

"What is happening?" Nina asked.

"Visions, of the past and future." Manna said.

Nina grabbed her ears as she heard the sound of an amplified heartbeat. She saw Rei kneeling over Rena. He was begging her not to die as he fiercely pumped her chest over and over. She saw Rena's chest arch over and over as she was completely in cardiac arrest. She saw Rei scream as she heard Rena's heart stop beating.

She saw the red cloaked man faze his hand through Rena's chest and restart her heart. She saw Rena standing in some sort of temple, her blue hair changing to a silver color. She saw Rei attack Rena without any remorse to what he was doing. She saw Rena strike him down with a sword.

She saw Ryu as he cried in agony, a dark foe having embedded her sword into his chest. She saw the cloaked man demanding answers from the woman, wanting to know why she attacked Ryu. She saw herself, holding Ryu as his breathing dwindled down into nothingness. She saw him weakly reach up and gently touched her face, and then the hand fell and went limp. She felt Ryu's heart stop beating.

"NO!" Nina cried. "Why are you showing me these things!"

Manna didn't answer. She only looked to the horizon. Finally she spoke. "The past cannot be changed. The future is shaped by the decisions me make today. What you have seen are both events in the past, and possible futures. Nothing is ever absolute. Nothing."

"Who… who are you!" Nina demanded. "Did Rena really die? Did she strike Rei down! Did… does… Ryu…." Nina choked back a scream.

"Rena was attacked my Luna Zandati. Her heart was stopped, but now she is all right. As for the other two questions, they are only glimpses of possible futures." Manna said.

"You still haven't answered me! WHO ARE YOU! **_WHAT_** ARE YOU!"

"Nothing your mind can comprehend." Manna said. "This is only a form for the present. What you see is how you perceive reality. For some odd reason, people perceive me as a woman with purple hair. But that is how I perceive myself. Nina, how do you perceive yourself?"

"I… don't know…" Nina admitted.

"…Solona is a dangerous foe, Nina." Manna said. "She will turn your doubt and fear against you. Remember, nothing is what it seems. And the world is how you choose to perceive it. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Will… all of this be worth it…?" Nina asked.

Manna smiled slightly as Nina was hit with one more vision. This one was of a small child, no older than five or six with long blue hair. Her eyes were green.

"Who…?" Nina asked as her world went white.

Nina felt her heart beat franticly in her chest. She came to her senses and felt Kagumi's tiresome heartbeat beneath her hands. Garr cleared his throat. 

"Nina, are you not going to heal her?" Garr asked, his voice taking on a note of concern.

"I… um… yeah." Nina stated as she felt the energy flow from her hand and into Kagumi's chest. She felt the energy envelope Kagumi's heart and strengthening it. She felt the heartbeats become more and more strong. Nina smiled when she felt Kagumi's heartbeat return to a rhythmic pulse.

Garr nodded as he and Nina stood up. He gathered the unconscious child into his arms. Dustin grinned as he looked at Garr. "Hecko, fellow comrade. I am Dustin Table, also known as the G-O-D. This is Anna Marie, our resident neko, and apparently you already know Nina."

Garr nodded and gave Nina a slightly confused look. "Friends of yours?"

"Um… sorta…" Nina said as she rung her dress in her hands. "Um, so, why are you here?"

"I am here to accompany you to Reis." Garr said. "I was told that is where you will find Ryu."

_(Synterra)_

"Well, I feel MUCH better!" Rena laughed as she walked around the village square. Cat and Kane gave her odd looks as they followed closely behind the young dragoness.

"Are you SURE that you are feeling better?" Cat asked, slightly worried. "Your heart WAS still under extreme duress yesterday."

"I am feeling fine!" Rena laughed as she pounded her chest. "Ooph. Well, maybe I shouldn't do that again, eh?"

"Rena…" Kane sighed. "You could drive an iron man crazy."

"That's exactly what my father said!" Rena giggled as she wagged a finger in front of the dark dragon.

"How are you healed?" Cat asked.

"Fast healer." Rena stated. "I specialize in white magic. I just couldn't heal myself earlier because Luna punctured my heart and caused it to stop beating."

"Oh, okay." Cat said doubtfully.

"Are we all ready to go?" Manna asked as she, Rei, and Elly walked up from behind the three. 

"Ready!" Rena and Cat said.

"Now," Kane turned to Elly. "Where's this…"

"Air ship." 

"Right, _that_ thing?"

"Right… there!" Elly pointed upwards into the sky. A long metallic ship descended from the sky and landed close to where the five stood. The wind from the ships engines nearly knocked them over.

The ship docked and a ramp extended from the side of the ship. The door slid open as a young man, with blond hair tied back in a braid, that was wearing a long red trench coat and black clothes and white gloves, walked down the ramp.

He grinned as he extended his hands. "So, you must be the people that Elly has told me about. I am the captain of the _HighWind_, the ship that you see before you."

Rena and Cat turned to Elly. "That is a SPACE SHIP!" Rena yelled. 

"Not an AIR SHIP!" Cat shrieked.

"Potato, potahto." Elly shrugged.

"And…… you are…?" Kane asked weakly. He shook as he felt his heart begin to accelerate in his chest.

"Ah, yes. How rude of me. I am Edo Elric." The man smiled.

"Edo Elric… great…" Manna sighed in annoyance as she yet again took a long drink from her flask and pulled out what Cat thought was a cigarette and lit it.

Kane's heart pumped furiously in his chest as he clutched it tightly. He felt he couldn't breathe. There was just some haunting familiarity to this ship… and this man that he just could not place.

"Kane? KANE!" Rena yelled as she noticed Kane's muscles tighten up. His eyes glazed over as his heart constricted painfully from pumping in his chest so hard.

"KANE!" Cat yelled as she saw Kane collapse to the ground, unconscious.

Edo shrugged. "Well, that was a nice introduction."

Rei sighed as he walked over to Kane and picked him up and hefted him over his shoulder. Cat gave Rei a worried look. "He just… well fainted. He'll be okay." 

Cat nodded numbly as she, Rei, Elly, and Rena boarded the 'air ship.' Manna turned to Edo and sighed.

"Nice intro. Except not! What the HECK were you thinking!"

"Nothing too important, Lady Sphere." Edo shrugged again. "So, that's Kane?"

"Yes."

"And the girl? Is that…?"

"Yes."

"Heh, this should be really fun then." Edo grinned as Manna whacked him upside the head.  
"You better not do anything stupid. Kane's already in some sort of catatonic seizure because you just HAD to introduce yourself with your given name. God, do you even THINK about your actions anymore!" Manna yelled as she whacked Edo again.

"Heh, sure ya ain't talking about yourself, Sphere?" Edo laughed as he tried to dodge the fireballs that Manna was hurling at him.

"DIE!" Manna shrieked.

To be continued… ;;;


	12. Chapter 12

Standard Disclaimer: Don't own the series.

AN: Long time no see ;; Well, here's the 12th chapter of this never ending fanfic. You can thank Catstar 4 for the motivation for me to write this chapter. Mainly because my muse went of freaking vacation and I was also busy writing another story (gasp).

Heh, been on a Fullmetal Alchemist and Neon Genesis Evanelgion kick for a little while. So, does anyone else think that Shinji is hands down the most whiny amine mecha pilot ever? Thought so. Meh, anyway, the characters Shoki and Inaro belong to Catstar, heheh… Thought you'd like to know. Anyway, onto the fanfic!

_"But someday I think you'll find out that what's on your back are wings that are for heading for the far-off future. The cruel angel's thesis will soon take flight through the window, with surging, hot pathos, if you betray your memories. Embracing this sky and shining, young boy, become the legend!"_

_Cruel Angel Thesis,_ Neon Genesis Evangelion Theme

Family Reunion

_(Somewhere about the southern continent, via "Air Ship")_

"Tell me you didn't mess this up!" Elly screamed as she threw her hands up in the air. "Seriously, what were you THINKING!"

Edo regarded the young teen with a smug grin from the swivel leather chair that he was currently sitting in. Elly was currently screaming at Edo in Edo's office/quarters. Edo leaned his elbows against the desk that was in the corner of the room and grinned.

"No, no. I didn't mess anything up, El, just having a little fun," the blonde grinned.

"You told Kane WHO YOU ARE!" Elly screamed as she pulled out her hair. "What kind of retarded thing is that!"

"Are you done yelling?"

"HECK NO!" Elly bellowed.

"Now?"

"CRAP NO!" 

"How about now?"

"HECKFIRE RAIN!" Elly screamed as a fireball formed in her hand and lanced out into thousands of shards at Edo's head. Edo yelled and held up his right hand and dismissed the shards.

"CRAP!" Edo yelled. "What was THAT about!"

"AHNE THANE GOKA!" Elly swore. "NI!"

"That's always nice to know…" Edo deadpanned. "So, are all preparations in place?"

"Shoki's working on it right now," Elly grinned. "This is going to be funny."

"Indeed," Edo smiled as he placed his elbows on the table and formed a hand bridge in front of his face. "Indeed." 

_(Unknown)_

There was a loud scream full of anger and anguish. A horrible injustice. The sky was alight with fire that rained down from the sky. There was death and destruction everywhere. Buildings fell into ruin as the very core of the planet itself shuttered from the impact of the heckfire's rain.

Everywhere he turned, people fell down dead from the impact of the heckfire rain. Those that did manage to survive ran to seek refuge in the falling buildings. There were loud shouts and angry cries in all directions. Kane looked over towards the center of the raging storm, and noticed what appeared to be the ruins of what was once a great white castle.

Hundreds of armed men and women were fighting against dark beings. In the highest tower of the fallen castle, was a young man, dressed in black armor and a helmet in the shape of a dragon's head, locked in combat with a man dressed in fine, elegant clothes with long black hair.

Kane yelled in anger as he watched the person beside him, a young man with long blond hair, draw his sword and turn to him. The man grinned and took of in a sprint to where several of the enemies were fighting against the guards of the once great castle.

Kane yelled out in horror as he saw one of the opponents swing his sword at the man and strike at his right arm. The man screamed in pain as the sword cleaved the arm right off. The man swung his sword with his left arm and cleaved the opponent in half. Kane ran over to the man and grabbed him right before he fell to the ground.

"This is going badly, eh?" Kane gave the man a lop-sided grin.

"Kane, you are not helping… AH!" the other man groaned in pain as he dropped his sword and clutched the right stump of his arm with his left hand.

"You should retreat for now, Ed," Kane said. "You can't fight with just one arm and the other bleeding badly," Kane said.

"Watch me, Kane," Ed muttered darkly. "But, don't worry about me, go help the Kaiser!"

"Eh, fine!" Kane said. "Ed, you better get through this alive!"

"No sweat," Ed grinned. "Get moving!"

Kane nodded and took of in a sprint to the stairwell to the highest tower of the castle. Their emperor, the Lord Kaiser, was fighting against the leader of the enemies. They might have been outnumbered, but their strong resolve was enough to hold this enemy at bay.

"Kane!" a young woman with long blonde hair, dressed in white and gold armor came running to the stairwell just as Kane approached it.

"Tolone!" Kane sighed. "You should not be here! Kaiser will be mad if he finds out that you are fighting!"

"I just can't let my finance fight this demon on his own!" Tolone growled, balling her hands up into fists. "He needs all the help he can get!"

"I know, that's why I am going to help him!" Kane yelled.

"I'll go with you!" Tolone yelled as she drew a sword.

"Fine, but stay behind me!"

The two quickly ran up the long spiral stairway. As the reached the top, the heard the leader of the enemies and Kaiser yelling and screaming curses and battle cries. Tolone screamed as she saw the man slice into the Kaiser. Kaiser turned around and saw Kane and Tolone watching the fight.

"My Lord!" Kane yelled as he ran over to Kaiser.

"Kane, get Tolone out of here!" Kaiser growled.

"Va--Uh!" Tolone grunted as the man jumped away from Kaiser and Kane and landed behind Tolone.

"This is too easy!" the man said as he held his sword at Tolone's back.

"CRAP!" Kaiser yelled. "LUCIAN!"

"So, you are the core of the Dragon Drive," Lucian smiled as he watched Tolone let out a shuttered breath. "Give me control of the Ragnork, and I will leave."

"Never," Tolone whispered. "I'd rather die, than let you… AH!"

"Fine then," Lucian grinned as he ran Tolone through with his sword. The woman screamed as the sword sliced through her back and out the other side. He quickly withdrew the blade and jerked Tolone around to face him. "You are a rather annoying little girl. If you will not help me, then there is no use for you!"

"LUCIAN!" Kaiser screamed, his voice filled with anguish. "STOP THIS!"

"KAISER!" Kane yelled. "It's no use. He won't listen!"

"I just can't let him kill her!" Kaiser screamed as he lunged at Lucian, sword drawn.

Lucian smiled and turned Tolone around to face Kaiser. Kaiser's eyes widened. He didn't have time to react or stop. Lucian released Tolone just as Kaiser's sword embedded itself in Tolone's chest. The young woman convulsed and collapsed forward, only to be held up by Kaiser's blade. She shuttered and coughed up blood. Tolone weakly looked up at Kaiser as the man's eyes flashed, and nodded.

Kane growled as he intercepted Lucian just as the man was about to lung at the stunned emperor. As the two parried blows, Kaiser quickly withdrew his blade and caught Tolone before she hit the ground.

Kaiser shook violently as his he fought the urge to loose it and start crying. He looked down at Tolone's chest wound and noticed that the sword had did major damage. He placed his head on her chest as he felt each weak, shaky breath she drew.

"Va…" Tolone whimpered weakly.

"Tolone…" Kaiser sobbed. "I… I'm so sorry…"

"It's…not urg… your fault…" Tolone gasped.

"KAISER!"

Kaiser's head snapped up just in time to see Lucian's sword embedded in Kane's stomach. Lucian's smile turned into a frown when he noticed Kane grab onto the sword with both hands as dark energy started to gather there. 

"IRONREAVER!" Kane growled as the dark energy surged form Kane and up the blade, and into Lucian. The man screamed and jerked his blade out of Kane. Kane collapsed to the ground as blood started to stain the stone floor.

Lucian growled and lunged for Kaiser. Kaiser quickly shielded Tolone with his body, but it was in vain. Lucian's sword flew down and pierced Kaiser through the shoulder blades and out of his chest and right into Tolone's chest. 

Both cried out as Tolone convulsed violently. Kaiser screamed in both anger and despair as he realized that the sword had pierced Tolone's heart. Kaiser held her as Lucian moved and ran Kaiser through again with his sword.

The emperor screamed as his back arched, then weakly he fell on top of Tolone. Lucian grinned as he withdrew the sword and walked over to where Kane lain. The last thing the dark dragon remembered was Lucian kicking him onto his back and ramming his sword into his chest. Then the entire world went black…

_(Highwind, sick bay)_

Kane grunted as he slowly opened his eyes. He was lying on his back in a white room. The room was actually the sick bay of the _Highwind_. The main room's walls were painted a pale green and white with several pictures hanging on the wall. Several light-colored chairs were up against the furthest wall from the door. A couch of the same color was up against the opposite wall. The doctor's office was off to the side in a side room. The door was currently closed. The actual patients' rooms were off in other wings of the infirmary.

Kane groaned again as he sat up and held his head. That dream… or nightmare. It was like some sort of long ago memory. It felt so real…

Kane looked over to the side and noticed a young girl. The girl was blond with green eyes. She was dressed in a purple spaghetti strap shirt, a dark purple shirt, and black dress shoes. The girl grinned at Kane as he slowly stood up and walked over to the girl.

"What… where is this?" Kane asked.

"The _Highwind_. You are in the sick bay mainly because you fainted," the girl said.

"_Okay…_" Kane sighed. "Where are…"

"Your friends are on the bridge," a young boy walked over and stood beside girl. He had spiky brown hair and was dressed in a black hoodie with a red T-shirt overtop if it, regular jeans, and blue slip on tennis shoes. 

"Right… well can you show me?" Kane asked.

The girl made a gesture with her hand and she and the boy walked out of the sick bay, with Kane following close behind them.

_(Highwind: Bridge)_

"Sumomo, view screen," Edo grinned. He was currently sitting in a metallic seat that was bolted onto the smooth, gray floor of the room. Computer equipment and control panels were all over the room; the main bridge actually.

The main screen popped to life. The face of a young girl with pink hair popped up on the screen and stuck her tongue out at Edo. An annoyed sigh came from behind Edo. Manna groaned as Rena and Cat gave Edo a confused look. The rest didn't know what to do.

"Sumomo is the ship's AI?" Manna growled darkly.

"Sumomo?" Rena scratched the back of her head. "But, isn't that the AI that Dad was working on?"

"Yeah…" Edo sighed. "Sumomo, VIEW SCREEN!" 

"Neah!" the pink AI stuck her tongue out again as the screen blipped black.

"Still working out the bugs?" Cat asked.

"That… is very pink…" Rei sighed.

"What is very pink?" Kane asked as he and the two children walked onto the bridge.

"Ah, Kane! Just the man I was wanting to see!" Edo laughed as he jumped up from the seat and walked over to Kane. 

Kane growled and grabbed Edo's right hand. He pushed up the sleeve and noticed the arm was made of metal. "How did this happen?" Kane asked. "It's you, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Edo grinned. He turned and looked at everyone. "Question time!" 

"Yeah!" Rena growled. "What's going on here? Who are you?"

"Edo Elric, just like I said." Edo smiled.

"We know that…" Manna growled. "What time, though? I sense the power of the Time Key at work."

"I'm from the present day," Edo said. "Those three, however, are from the future," Edo grinned as he pointed to Elly and the boy and girl. "They came from the future to help out because the fight at Reis is going to be fierce. They knew that without their help, Rei, Kane, and Rena would have died. So, they came to prevent all the nasty stuff from happening."

Elly grimaced. The boy shook his head and the girl sighed. "Ed, not now!" the girl snapped.

"Oh, and it get's better!" Edo laughed. "Elly is actually named Elehayym Moon."

Rena cocked an eyebrow. "Are you related to me or something?"

Elly shook her head, but Edo cut her off. "Gees Rena, don't you noticed the resemblance? She's your future kid!" 

"What!" Rena yelled.

"EDO!" Elly snapped. 

"And guess who the father is!" Edo grinned.

"NO!" 

Edo grinned and pointed at Rei. Rei shook his head. "What?" 

"Yup, you two do the deed, and have Elly!" Edo grins. "Oh, and those two," Edo pointed to the girl and boy. "Are," 

"Don't even think about it!" the girl yelled.

"The loud mouth is named Shoki and the boy's Inaro," Edo grinned. 

"Okay…?" Cat said.

"Heh, enough Edo," Inaro laughed nervously. "There's no need to say anything else, right?" 

"Yeah!" Shoki and Elly laughed nervously.

"I should really say that their full names are Shoki and Inaro Lokhart. They are twins."

"Lokhart?" Kane asked. "As in…"

"Ye-up!" Edo laughed maniacally. "You're future kids, Kane!"

"WHAT!" Cat yelled.

"Oh, and how could I forget, yours too, Cat!" Edo laughed.

"Heheh… what?" Cat asked in a mix of confusion and nervousness.

"Let me explain, you and Kane…"

"We don't need details…" Rena said hastily.

Inaro sighed and turned to Elly and Shoki. "I just KNEW that he shouldn't have asked Edo for help! I knew something like this would happen! Think about what effects this meeting could have on the timeline and…"

Shoki just sighed and palmed her face. She shook her head and smacked her brother upside the head. "Are you done rambling?"

"Ouch…" Inaro grumbled. "Hey, Unc, what…"

"Unc?" Manna grumbled darkly as she looked at Inaro.

"Yeah, Uncle Edo…. What?" Inaro looked around at the bewilder looks that the entire crew was giving him.

Kane growled in annoyance. "Are you…?"

Edo grinned. "Yup. Nice to see that you are still a paranoid schizophrenic, brother."

To be continued… 

9


	13. Chapter 13

Standard Disclaimer: Don't own the series.

AN: Simple and sweet, eh? Yes, I am very much aware that there is a lot of running dialog in this chapter. And I know that it is a really short chapter. I apologize. My muse is on vacation and just decided to email me some inspiration. But not much. Anyway, onto the fanfic!

"_Consolations, be there in my dreamland to come. The key to open the door is in your hand, now take me there."_

---"Key of the Twilight," _.hack/SIGN_

Sacrifice

_(Worent)_

"No…" Sora whispered as she, Vin, and Ryu walked through the village gates of the once proud tribe of the Woren. Everywhere they looked, huts and barns were burnt to the ground. Horses and other live stock were littered on the ground, slaughtered and covered in blood.

What was more unsettling were the lifeless bodies of the village residents themselves that littered the ground throughout the city. Ryu shook his head and quickly darted his eyes around, looking for survivors.

"You won't find anyone here still alive," a figure cloaked in a black trenchcoat and a hood over his head said.

The three turned around and saw the man. Sora stepped forward and drew her spear and got into a battle stance. "Who are you suppose to be!"

"If you are looking for Kai, he's at Reis," the man said. "Rouges attacked this place, looking for something called "Dragon Drive." They didn't find it, so they slaughtered the villagers and the ones that they kept alive, they took to Reis as prisoners." Vin nodded.

"I understand. Sora, Ryu, come. We must leave this place and go east into the desert, over the mountains. There, we will find the ones we seek."

"This… this is…" Ryu said through gritted teeth. He clenched his fists to his sides and started shaking.

"Ryu, there's nothing more we can do here," Sora said as she placed her hand on his shoulder. Ryu relaxed somewhat.

Ryu turned to the man, but the man was gone. Vin turned to the two and motioned towards the exit. They started to walked out, but were stopped when three figures appeared under the broken gates.

Luna, Payne, and Orion grinned as the three stopped walking and drew their weapons. Ryu stepped forward.

"What is the meaning of this!" Ryu shouted in anger. "This is your doing!"

Luna grinned. She watched as Sora clenched her hands around her spear. Luna's eyes widened slightly when she saw what she thought was a light quietly pulsing within Sora's chest, where her heart would be. Luna smiled. The Dragon Drive. That girl had the Dragon Drive.

Luna narrowed her eyes somewhat. What if she was wrong, and that light wasn't the Dragon Drive? She had to make sure. She turned to her companions who only nodded. Payne and Orion stepped forward and lunged. Orion went after Ryu and Payne went after Vin.

While Vin and Ryu were preoccupied with fighting the two, Luna quietly raised her hand and spread out her fingers. Fine lines of energy laced themselves around her hand. She noticed Sora pause as her eyes widened slightly. The light that Luna saw grew slightly and pause. Luna grinned.

Luna slowly closed her hand. The light dimmed somewhat. Sora moaned as she dropped her spear and clutched her chest. Luna grinned. She was right. The spell would be able to control and extract the Dragon Drive from her easily. Luna quickly opened her hand. Sora screamed as his eyes widened. Her felt his heart expand and just stay in that state. She collapsed to her knees as she tightly clutched her chest, her breath coming out in choked gasps.

Luna grinned. This was just too much. She quickly balled her hand up into a fist, causing the light to quickly constrict. Sora screamed as she felt her heart tighten. She choked as her eyes rolled up in her head and she collapsed onto the burnt ground. Luna walked over and waved her hand. Tendrils of energy lanced from Luna's hand and wrapped themselves around Sora. Sora moaned weakly as Luna levitated her over to her.

"So, we meet," Luna said. She stood in front of Sora and smiled. "I can see that light pulse within your chest. Such a strong light." She closed her eyes. "Yes, it is YOU that has the Dragon Drive. I should have known it was inside of YOU."

Luna opened her eyes. She watched as the light began to pulse weakly. She frowned. She placed her hand over Sora's chest and felt her heartbeat beat weakly. "You cannot die now!" Luna shouted. "I need you alive so I can extract the Dragon Drive!"

Sora's heart fluttered weakly in her chest. Luna yelled as she drew her arm back, her hand charging with energy. She thrust her hand forward at Sora's chest. Luna realized fazing her hand through Sora's chest would only serve to cause her heart more duress. She let loose the energy into Sora's body.

Sora's body convulsed as her heart started to throb painfully in her chest. The light that was pulsing in her chest dimmed greatly. Luna growled and proceeded to shock Sora again.

"FINAL JUDGEMENT!" Vin roared as a blast of pure gold energy blasted from his hands and rammed right into Payne. She went flying across the village, screaming swears the entire time.

Luna looked over to see Vin come running right for them. She growled and charged energy in her hand. She sent it flying right at Vin, who simply dodged the blast and swung his fist right at Luna, catching her in the gut. She fell to the ground, screaming.

"ORION!" Luna yelled as she clutched her stomach. "SOME HELP HERE!"

Orion punched Ryu in the stomach, causing the young dragon to fall to the ground, unconscious. He grinned and swung his sword right at Vin. Vin grinned and caught the sword with his hands just as the blade made contact with him. Vin charged the blade and caused it to shatter.

Luna growled as she and Orion took a step back. Vin took a step forward and cracked his knuckles. "This is going to be fun…" Vin smirked.

_(HighWind's main bridge)_

Rena turned to Edo. "Brother? What the heck…?"

Edo grinned, then sighed. "Something like that, you could say. What's more is…"

The view screen came to life, cutting Edo off in mid-sentence. "Ed!" Sumomo yelled. "We are approaching the desert village of Worent."

"What's so special about…"

"It's under attack by Rouges!"

"What?" Manna's eyes narrowed. "Sumomo, who is it?"

Sumomo gave Manna a really worried look. "It's all of them!"

Rena's eyes widened. "It's what! That… ARG!" Rena threw her arms up in the air in annoyance. "Sumomo! Set course for Worent!"

"Aye, aye!" Sumomo laughed.

"Wait!" Edo yelled in annoyance. "I'm the only one that can…"

"Sumomo, NOW!" Manna screamed.

"Right-o!"

Cat turned to Kane while everyone else was arguing with the A.I. "Did you just hear that…?"

"Can't think…" Kane muttered weakly. "Brain refuses to function…"

Elly grinned nervously. "Well, uh…"

Shoki grinned. "Ah, come on. It isn't THAT bad, is it?"

Kane just shook his head while Cat laughed. "No," Kane said. "It's worse…"

_(Worent)_

"KAI?" Kane screamed as the _HighWind _touched down in the barren wastelands that was once the village of the Worens.

The village had been burnt to the ground. Huts and stables were just burnt timber. Horses and other live stock were littered around the burnt ground, slaughtered. They slowly walked off of the ramp and looked around.

"I don't believe this," Manna said. "This is definitely the work of Rouges."

"The question is though, are there any survivors," Edo said.

"Hey Unc," Inaro said. Edo turned around. "Did you know that the chick with the Lolita complex is back?"

"Eh?"

"Payne is here," Shoki said. Manna nodded.

"You two are pretty good," Manna said.

"Have to be," Shoki grinned.

"Dad can be pretty dense sometimes," Inaro nodded his head.

"I resent that…" Kane grumbled.

"Orion and Luna are here, too," Manna sighed. "What could they possibly be looking for…? Oh, no!"

"What now?"

"The Dragon Drive…"

Inaro cocked his head to the side. "Is that…?"

"Yes," Manna said.

"But doesn't that mean…?"

"Yes," Edo nodded.

"They will tag-team him then," Manna said. "Come!"

"Manna," a male voice said from behind them.

They turned around to see a cloaked man standing behind them. "You?" Manna asked.

"It's too late," he said. Manna frowned.

"What's going on?" Edo asked.

"The Awakening," the man said.

"The… what?" Edo asked.

"Dragon Drive," Manna said.

"Oh, no…" Shoki said. "Then that means we're too late!"

"We have to look for them then. Let's split up," Rena said. "We'll be able to cover more ground that way."

"Sure that's a good idea?" Cat asked as she and the others passed by the burnt huts.

"We'll split up into teams of two, so that way, no one will be able to ambush us," Rei said.

The others nodded. "Okay, Kane and I will check out the northern part of the village, um…" Cat tilted her head to the side.

"Rei and I will go east," Elly said, earning her an odd look from the others.

"Manna and I will take south," Rena said.

"Shoki and I will take west," Inaro commented.

"What about Ed?" Cat asked

"I'll be fine," Edo smiled. "Trust me."

"Okay," Cat said as she summoned Oathkeeper and Kane drew his buster sword.

"We will meet back at the _HighWind _in an hour, agreed?"

"Sure," Rena said. "See yah!" she yelled over her shoulder as she took off towards the south. Manna shrugged and walked off after the hyper dragoness.

The others nodded and quickly ran off in their target directions. Edo stood in the center of the village and sighed. He looked over at the man in the cloak. The man nodded and sighed.

"It starts," the man simply commented.

"The final battle," Edo sighed.

_(Worent: western end of the village)_

"Orion!" Luna yelled as Vin double kicked Orion in the head several times in a row. He grinned and cracked his knuckles again.

"So, who's next?"

"WHAT THE HECK!" Rena screamed as she and Manna ran up on the fight. Manna grinned when she saw Vin getting ready to attack Luna.

Luna quickly jerked her head around and saw Rena and Manna. Luna grinned. Rena's eyes widened as she saw Sora in the air convulsing. She yelled as she charged Luna. She swung her staff at Luna, causing the staff to hit her upside the head. She screamed as she felt the impact.

Rena swung the staff again, this time Luna catching the hint and vanished. The tendrils around Sora vanished as she started to fall towards the ground. Rena reacted quickly and caught Sora's body before she hit the ground. Sora's sudden weight caused Rena to fall on her rear, Sora on top of her. Sora moaned weakly as she continued to convulse.

"What happened here?" she asked quietly. "Sora, can you hear me?"

Sora weakly opened her eyes and met green eyes. She moaned and opened her mouth. "R….ena?"

She nodded slightly. "Yeah, it's me."

Sora simply nodded before her eyes rolled up into her head and her muscles started to tighten slightly. Rena's eyes widened in alarm. Sora's head suddenly jerked back as she let loose a deafening scream.

"Sora!" Rena asked, panicked. "C'mon! What's wrong!"

"Luna tried to extract the Dragon Drive from her," Orion said as he and Payne walked up on the dragon and demi-goddess.

"Dragon what!" Rena growled. "What has Luna done to Sora!"

"We need her," Luna said, reappearing beside her comrades. She waved her hand and a light appeared in Sora's chest, throbbing violently.

"What!" Rena growled. "What is this!"

"That is the Dragon Drive," Luna said as she made her way over to Rena and Sora. "Such a brilliant light. However, it is going out."

"Only because you tried to kill her!" Rena shouted.

"Come with us now," Orion yelled. "Or you both die!"

"Rena… no…" Sora whispered as she steeled herself again Rena and forced herself up into a sitting position. "You will not harm her!"

The light in Sora's chest pulsed wildly and grew brighter. She stood up and weakly stepped over to the three. "I will not allow you to harm anyone!"

"Sora! Wait!" Sora turned around and watched Rena. "You can't do this!"

Sora said nothing. Instead, she yelled and charged Luna. She swung her spear at her. Luna dodged and growled. Manna shook her head and quickly drew her sword and charged Sora. She knocked Sora upside the head with the flat of the blade, causing Sora to fall backwards. Sora screamed as she felt herself falling, but was surprised to find that she didn't hit the ground.

She weakly turned around to see Ryu holding her up. Ryu grinned. Manna moved with lightning speed as she charged Luna. Luna lightning in her hand and just as Manna came around to strike her, she thrust her hand out and let loose the energy attack. Manna dodged the attack and swung back around.

While Rena and Vin were covering for Manna, Payne grinned and motioned for Orion to strike at Sora and Ryu. Orion and Payne grinned at each other as the charged energy in their hands and let loose the blasts, hitting Ryu and Sora at the same time. The two fell and Orion caught Sora.

"Will this do?" Orion asked as he threw the Sora over his shoulder.

"Yes," Payne said. "But what about the Dragon Prince?"

Vin and Rena jerked around just as Manna punt-kicked Luna upside the head. The three quickly raced over towards Orion, but halted in mid run when Payne drew her sword and held it over Sora's head.

"We wouldn't want anything to happen to her, huh?" Payne started, but was suddenly cut off when an arrow of light shot out of nowhere and hit the ground near her feet. The three looked over and saw Elly standing there, a long bow in her hand and drawn with another arrow.

"YOU AGAIN?" Rei roared as he noticed Luna.

Luna smirked. "Orion."

Orion grinned as he vanished with Sora. "If you want her back, come to Reis. Your dear friend Edo should know the way," Luna grinned as she and Payne vanished.

Rena groaned. "We HAD THEM!"

"Where's Sora!" Ryu yelled as he weakly sat up.

"They got her," Rei said numbly.

"We need to get back and tell the others," Manna said. "We are going to Reis to finish this once and for all."

"I will kill them," Ryu muttered darkly. "They will pay for this, I swear it…"

TO BE CONTINUED…

9


	14. Chapter 14

Standard disclaimer: I don't know Breath of Fire.

AN: Yes, another running dialog chapter. This is the long awaited chapter that explains EVERYTHING about the Rouges and what their plans are.

Memorial Day

_(Worent village)_

"Ryu…?" Rena whispered. She slowly took a step forward. "Are you really here?"

Ryu turned to his sister and grinned slightly. "Hey Rena."

Rena grinned as she ran to the young dragon prince, arms wide open. Ryu raised his arms to his side to hug Rena as she ran over to him. Ryu's smile turned into a look of sheer horror as Rena's grin turned into a nasty frown. She charged energy in her hands as she sent a bolt of lightning in his direction.

Ryu swore loudly as he was struck again and again. He fell flat on his rear as Rena loomed over him and used the dragon lance to prepare to beat him upside the head. Vin shook his head and grabbed Rena's wrist before she was able to complete her mission.

"Heh… hiya?" Ryu laughed weakly.

"I'll hiya you in a moment, you jerk!" Rena grumbled darkly. "I thought you were dead!"

"I… ugh! Vin!" Ryu pleaded.

Vin sighed and turned to Rena. "Don't kill him, Rena. He has a really good reason as to why he went missing."

"And that would be…?"

"So Solona would not get him," Vin stated simply as he grabbed Ryu by the upper arm and started to drag him off. "Come on. Everyone is waiting for us at the ship."

Rena smiled as she turned back to Ryu. "I am glad you are alright, Ryu."

Ryu laughed nervously. "Heh, if that's how you act when you are glad to see me, I'd hate to see how you are when you are mad…"

_(Reis)_

"Well, well, well," Solona grumbled. "You three actually managed to do something right for once. I am rather surprised."

Solona turned to her three henchmen. Luna, Orion, and Payne were kneeling before their mistress, who was standing behind a table in the temple of Reis. Lying on top of the table was a comatose Sora. A weak light was weakly pulsing in her chest, lighting up the dark room.

Solona turned and looked down at Sora. She reached for the light, but it shocked her. She quickly drew her hand back and held it against her chest. She swore as she turned back to the three.

"They are on their way here as we speak. I want you three to… 'entertain' our guests when they arrive. In the meantime, I will prepare for the ceremony. Dismiss!"

The three filed out. Solona turned back to Sora. "Soon, you will give me the Dragon Drive, and I will be rid of you once and for all…"

_(HighWind: Bridge)_

Edo sighed as he turned around and noticed the new companions that the Destined had brought with them. Unfortunately, it was not all of the ones he was hoping for. He ran a hand through his blond hair as he took notice of Vin and Ryu.

He laughed nervously as he watched Vin walk right over to him and stare down at him. Edo grinned as Vin sighed and turned back to Manna in annoyance.

"Edo?" he asked, jerking his thumb at the shorter man.

Manna nodded in annoyance. "Want the filler, or what?"

"Not really. I have an idea as to what's already going on. Do they?" Vin asked as he gestured to the rest of the party.

"What IS going on?" Rena asked. "Does this have to do with what happened three years ago?"

Cat shuttered. "Are, they the ones that…?"

Manna and Vin nodded grimly. Edo sighed and turned to the view screen. A map of the Arad Desert popped up, and then zoomed in on the mountain rang, and then on an ancient looking temple.

"Reis, people," Edo stated. "This is where the enemy is."

"That's also where Kai and Sora are…" Ryu muttered darkly. Rena turned to her brother and placed her hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, Unc!" Inaro said. Edo growled.

"What?"

Inaro and Shoki turned to Cat and Kane. "Do you know what's really going on?" Shoki asked. They shook their heads no. "Goodie!" Shoki laughed as she clapped her hands together. "Who wants to take it away and explain all of this then?"

"I will," Manna said. "Ah, to start things off, I think by now everyone and their grandmother knows that Vin and I are Furyians, right?"

"Who IS Vin?" Ryu asked, turning to the bald man.

"I am her husband," Vin stated as he pointed to Manna.

"Ah, what!" Ryu cried.

"Moving right along," Manna grumbled darkly. "As I was saying; we are Furyians. We belong to one of the oldest races in creation. Here's the textbook version: for the most part, Furyians are a peaceful race. Powerful, but peaceful. We are like guardians, protectors. We ensure peace throughout the universe and protect those who cannot protect themselves. But that does not mean that there are those who would not abuse such power. Solona is what we refer to as a Rouge. A Furyian that has turned their back on the Order and only wishes to use their vast powers for chaos or personal gain… and in Solona's case, total universal annihilation.

"We are from a planet called Ethereal. We are sometimes called that, too. Vin and I are something like captains or leaders or something like that. In other words, most Furyians report to us. We, in turn report to a man named Onyx, who is even more powerful than Vin and I. This is the case because he is much older than I am."

Rei grinned. "And just how old are you?"

"Old enough to be your ancestor," Manna grumbled darkly. "I really don't know how old Onyx is, but I do know that he's really old, but not always so wise."

Rena nodded in agreement. "That is true. He can be a real pain sometimes."

"You know him?" Ryu asked, turning to Rena.

"Well…. Yeah," Rena said. "You do too, Ryu. He's Dad."

Rei's mouth fell open. "Yee--your d-d-d-d-d-DAD is ONYX!"

"Yeah, though you'd think he'd choose a better name, eh?" Vin asked, smirking.

"Right well," Manna turned to Kane. "You and Edo take this one."

Kane nodded. "During the War of the Gods… the Brood were originally from one of Asparia's moons. Its called Wysteria. I am originally from there… just like Edo. The Brood Empire was at its peak thousands and thousands of years ago. It was a peaceful place. We had allies everywhere in the galaxy, among them the Furyians, as well as other races that are probably long gone.

"I lived there. Back then, there was no such thing as a light dragon, or a dark dragon. We were just dragons. That didn't happen until the advent of Myria. Lucian came… they struck without warning…"

"Lucian?" Cat asked.

Kane turned around to face Cat. "They killed everything in their path. Edo and I fought back, along with our emperor, but it was for naught. The emperor's fiancée, Tolone, was killed in the attack. In that moment, the emperor hesitated, and was run through with Lucian's blade. Edo and I struck back, but Edo's arm and leg were cut clean off. I was ran through, and incased in chrysm ore. I was hurled to Asparia and trapped underground for thousands of years, before I was freed by my false parents. I couldn't remember anything, so they made me their son."

Kane turned back to Manna. Manna nodded "When that was going on, Onyx appeared. He struck Zeipher and Solona and rend then powerless. He then struck at Lucian, who at that time was something like their ringleader. He sealed them away, if I'm not mistaken. That was thousands of years ago, no doubt."

"Zeipher got loose again, though," Edo said. "At that time,"

"At that time was when Terra, I mean Taijkos and I were ruling Asparia as its guardians," Rei said. "Tai fought Zeipher and ended up sealing him away in her body. She became evil and in the end, was the one that corrupted Myria. Then the Dragon Wars started."

"We know this," Rena said. "Deis told us as much."

"And you remember about Dracen being Bahn and Kyra," Manna said. Everyone nodded.

"Remember the attack?" Rena said as she turned to Cat. Cat nodded.

"That was when Solona attacked Earth, looking for something really important."

"Oh?"

"She attacked Earth looking for the two people that could destroy her and the other Rouges. The ones that are able to wield the Oathkeeper and Oblivion," Manna said.

Rena nodded in understanding. She turned to Cat. "She came to Earth to destroy you and Dustin."

Cat nodded. "I know. I had a dream where Zeipher tried to kill me, but Mr. Moon stopped him."

"Why is it that they can wield those swords and no one else can?" Rei asked.

"Because they are part human, part Furyian," Manna explained. "Rena and Ryu can't because they are part Brood. Vin and I can't because we are full-blooded Furyians. It was a fell safe that Onyx placed on the blades to keep people from using them, until the ones that were destined to use them came."

"Simple enough," Kane said. "So we are up to speed, what's their game plan now?"

"They plan on using Kagumi, Sora, and Ryu's powers to revive Zeipher," Vin said.

"Kagumi?"

"She is a little girl, whose body has been transformed into a false Endless. She is currently traveling with Dustin, Nina, Garr, and a cat girl named Anna." Vin said. "They are also on their way to Reis as we speak."

"So, we break into Reis, then what?" Rena asked. "And what was that thing that Luna kept yelling about called then Dragon Drive?"

"Something that will allow them to revive Zeipher much faster," Elly sighed. "That's the thing we need to get, and apparently it is inside of Sora."

"So, our plan is to rescue everyone and destroy the bad guys, right?" Ryu grinned. "Sounds simple enough, right?"

"Not really," Manna laughed. "But then again, who ever said this was going to be easy?"

"Right," Edo said. "Reis is straight ahead!"

_(Arad Desert: Reis mountain range)_

Kagumi whimpered as the Great Bird flew high overhead the ancient temple of Reis. She clung to Zeke as they raced to their destination. Nina turned to Zeke and gave him an odd look.

"So, that's where the bad guys are?" she asked.

Zeke nodded. "Yes, and it will be a blood bath from here on out. Are all of you ready for this?"

Anna and Dustin nodded. "I will not allow them to win!" Dustin yelled.

"They are going down!" Anna agreed.

"Right!" Nina said. "Look!" Nina pointed to the temple. "There it is! That's the place where they have Ryu! We're going in! Mina take us down!" Nina said.

"This is it!" Dustin said. "It's all or nothing!"

Kagumi smiled in Zeke's back. It's all or nothing. There truly was no in between. She relaxed at the Great Bird prepared to land. Soon, it would be over. Soon…

The five filed off of the Great Bird as she landed. They stood in front of the ancient temple and drew their weapons. Three shadowed figures emerged from the entrance of the temple. Luna, Orion, and Payne grinned evilly as they drew their weapons.

Dustin sighed. "Figures. Look's like the welcoming committee. Well, then. Shall we get to know each other?"

Nina and Anna grinned. "Oh, let's!" Anna grinned as she cocked her gun. Nina charged her wand as Zeke summoned his halberd.

"Right, CHARGE!" Dustin yelled as he and the others ran towards Orion, Payne, and Luna.

TO BE CONTINUED…

7


	15. Chapter 15

Standard disclaimer: I don't own Breath of Fire…

AN: please excuse the poor writing. I am practically forcing myself to write this. I know this is a bad idea, but I have gone far too long without having written an actual chapter to this series that wasn't just filler. That and I promised myself I would get this done ASAP. So, enjoy. Oh, and note this chapter is a wee bit graphic (i.e.: exploding body parts). Thought you'd like to know…

Heart of Fire

_(HighWind)_

"Reis," Rena muttered darkly. "We're finally here…"

"Eight!" Edo yelled. "Prepare for landing. Everyone, get ready for combat!"

Edo turned from the view screen to the assembled Destined. He looked down at his metal hand and looked up at the others. Manna nodded as she drew her staff from behind her and brought it forward. Ryu glanced over at Rena, then Kane. Cat grinned slightly as she felt Kane's hand slip into her's and squeeze it slightly. Rei just stared at the view screen.

Shoki, Inaro, and Elly walked over and stood with Edo as the HighWind landed outside of the desert entrance of Reis.

"We need to figure out the batting order we are going in," Inaro said.

"Everyone?" Elly asked.

"Vin with Manna, Cat with Kane, Rena with Rei, and Ryu with…."

"Me," Elly said. "We have a better chance that way,"

Ryu nodded numbly. "Got'cha."

"EDO!" Eight yelled suddenly. "There's a fight going on outside between Solona's goons… and…"

"Nina!" Ryu yelled.

"Dustin!" Rena, Cat, and Manna growled.

"Garr?" Kane asked.

"A… catgirl?"

Edo nodded. "Right, well, get over there and help them! The twins and I will cover you in the ship and come in later if it gets too ugly."

"Which, knowing Dad," Inaro said. "We will be there within five minutes of the fight."

"You are NOT too old for a spanking, y'know?" Kane growled.

_(Reis)_

"This isn't going really good!" Nina screamed as she threw a windblade at Luna, which was countered with a shield. "We're outclassed!"

"And outmatched!" Anna yelled as she fired over and over again, only to have the beams to bounce off harmlessly from Orion's armor.

"HARK!" Dustin yelled in anger. "We shall not give in!"

"Face it, you lost!" Luna laughed. "For we…"

"NATURE'S WRAITH!" Luna tensed up at the voice." STRIKE MY FOE!"

Luna screamed as a bolt of white lightening struck her and knocked her to her feet. She looked up to see Rena's form looming over her, the young dragon having a really pissed off look on her face.

"Payback time," Rena growled as she charged another attack in her hands. Luna grinned.

"You're still alive?"

"HOLY LIGHTENING!" Rena screamed, casting lightening at Luna again. Luna blocked the attack and grinned.

She lunged forward, her hand glowing dark and charged Rena. Rena's eyes widened as Luna's hand made contact with Rena's chest. Rena's heart began to race franticly as Luna's hand rested on Rena's chest.

"Payback time, you say?" Luna grinned as she left Rena's heart pump in her chest.

"Heh, yeah…" Rena smirked as she suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Luna's arm with both hands. Her nails extended and dug into the skin, Rena clawing her as hard as she could.

"ARG!" Luna screamed. "You… little… BRAT!" Luna screamed as her hand flashed with a red color. She tried to thrust it into Rena's chest, but the young dragoness held on. Rena's own hands began to flash gold and she left loose an electric shock into Luna.

Nina jerked around and spotted Rena and Luna shocking each other. Remembering what happened to Kagumi, Nina leaped forward and raced to help Rena. Ryu also jerked around and spotted Luna and Rena and saw Nina racing over to help, while everyone else was busy with fighting the other Warriors.

"Dragon wench!" Luna screamed, shocking Rena. Luna grinned as she felt Rena's heart began to pump franticly.

"Not this time…" Rena said through gritted teeth. Luna smiled as she left loose a bolt of energy inside of Rena's body. Rena's screams caused Nina and Ryu to stop dead in their tracks. Kagumi's head jerked up as she saw Luna electrocuting Rena.

"Ryu…?" Nina asked, finally having spotted Ryu.

Ryu grinned.

Kagumi held her hands in front of her in prayer and closed her eyes. Her wings flashed gold as they began to grow in size, until they were as big as she was. Her entire form flashed gold as the battlefield was covered up in an array of gold light.

Everyone stopped fighting long enough to see Kagumi's shining form, before their entire world went black.

_(One of the caves below Reis)_

"Ryu…?" Ryu's eyes opened slightly, trying to focus in the darkness. He sat up and realized that he was in complete darkness. He glanced around and spotted Nina and Garr looking at him.

"What…? Nina?" Ryu whispered.

"RYU!" Nina screamed as she lunged at Ryu, embracing him a tight hug. Nina's sudden force was enough to knock them both to the ground. They both just laid there for a few moments, crying and hugging, until Garr coughed.

They both stood up as Garr readied his spear. He gestured to the far wall, a dark figure beginning to form in front of them. The figure stepped forward to reveal Orion, his sword drawn in his hand.

"What!" Ryu yelled, drawing the Dragon Blade.

"There seems to be a bit of a problem," Orion said. "I need to take the Prince with me to the Mistress in order to complete our plans. Now Ryu, come with me."

"I will not let you take RYU!" Nina screamed as she drew her rapier and lunged at Orion. The man smirked and sidestepped her.

He swung again and was countered by Garr. He jumped back and grinned. "Good, good. This makes things more interesting!" His sword charged. "IRON REAVER!"

The three side-stepped Orion. He growled. "For over 4000 years, I have been fighting!

War and death seemed to plague all races regardless of where they were. How does one deal with chaos and destruction? Destruction only leads to more destruction. Hate leads to more hate. No matter how much one tries to fight for what's right, it seems like the cycle of death and destruction always seems to continue. I am tired of seeing all of the death that was dealt to my race!"

Orion's eyes narrowed. "Guardian! Your kind slaughtered my race!"

Garr's eyes narrowed. "You are Brood…"

A loud heartbeat echoed throughout the dark cave. "YES!" Orion's voice began to distort. "AND NOW!" he flashed and turned into a large black dragon. "I WILL KILL YOU ALL AND DELIVER RYU TO SOLONA, TO AWAKEN LORD ZEIPHER, AND THEN PEACE SHALL RETURN TO THE LAND!"

_(Another of the caves below Reis)_

"Rena! No!" Rei yelled as Rena was thrown back by one of Luna's blasts. Rei growled as he moved quickly and caught the annoyed Rena. Cat yelled in anger and blasted Luna as she spun around in midair and proceeded to do a fly by beat down on Kane's head.

Kane grinned as he swung his sword and blocked Luna's attack. She jumped back just in time to get hit with Rena's lance. The woman growled as she jumped back once again and this time, she was hit with Oathkeeper. This kept up until she finally got tired of being hit.

Luna screamed and lunged at Rena. Rena rolled her eyes and blocked Luna's attack. Luna jumped back and lunged at Rei. Rei grinned and ki blasted her. His grin turned into a frown when he realized he just hit the wall. His eyes widened when he felt Luna's hand in his back. She let loose a blast that cause his back to arch and him to cry out in pain.

She waved her hand and caused dark light to form around Rei. "This is my little present to you children." And with that, she teleported out.

"What?" Cat started to say, but was cut off when Rei's body contorted in pain as dragon wings burst from his back. He screamed as his eyes flashed red and his features became more draconic. Rena nodded and unfolded her wings.

"She forced Rei to change!" Rena yelled. "He's berserk!"

"Meaning!" Kane yelled.

"ARG!" Rei yelled as he lunged at Cat, hitting her in the shoulder with his clawed hand. She screamed as Kane ran forward. Rei stabbed Kane in the chest, causing the dragon to scream and fall over in pain.

"Rei! STOP!" Rena screamed.

_He can't hear you! _A familiar voice cried in the back of Rena's mind.

_What… do I do then! _Rena mentally screamed.

_Kill him._

"WHAT!" Rena screamed.

_Trust yourself. You will know what to do…_

Rena steeled herself as Rei flew down at her. She jumped forward and lunged her staff into his chest, the end penetrated out of his back. She pulled it out as Rei reverted and fell to the ground. Rena closed her eyes and steeled herself again.

She ran over to Cat and Kane and healed them, and then ran over to Rei, who was laying motionlessly on the ground, not breathing. Kane walked over and sighed.

"He's dead…" Kane said solemnly.

"No…" Rena stated. "Not yet… I… can heal him… but…"

"But?"

"It will take all of my powers to do so…" Rena knelt down and started to heal Rei. Rei screamed as his body contorted in pain.

"All…your powers?" Kane asked. "But… wait!"

"This is my choice!" Rena yelled as the white light seeped into Rei and started to repair the damaged done. Rena groaned as she felt her draconic powers leave her and enter into Rei. Rena's hair started to change from dark blue to a pale silver color. Rei suddenly jerked up and screamed. He fell backwards and Rena caught him before he hit the ground.

He looked at Rena in confusion. "Long story…" Rena said. "Can you walk?"

"Ye…yeah…" Rei said as he stood up and glanced at Rena. "What's with the hair?"

"Longer story…" Rena grinned. "Looks like you owe me again."

"Indeed."

_(Where Dustin and Anna are)_

"I just want to go home!" Anna yelled as she and Dustin fought back to back against Payne's onslaught of fury swipes.

"Hark!" Dustin yelled. "There is only one way out of this place! And that is to go forward!"

"How the hell do you plan on doing THAT!" Anna yelled.

"Yeah!" Payne laughed. "How do you plan on doing… ARG!" Payne screamed as she felt Oblivion go right through her chest.

"That way!" Dustin laughed. Payne glared at the young man and lunged forward.

Dustin jerked the blade out of Payne and vanished. Payne jerked around, trying to find Dustin. Over and over again, Dustin let loose a series of jabs and strikes, each of them always hitting their intended target. Payne barely had time to reach when she heard Dustin chanting. A dark blast then hit her upside the head, sending her flying.

"This… isn't over!" Payne screamed as she started to vanish.

"OH YES IT IS!" Anna screamed as she aimed her laser and blasted Payne. Dustin screamed a battle cry as he lunged the sword right into Payne. She screamed and exploded in a flurry of dark matter.

Dustin and Anna fought back bile as the dark matter landed on them. Anna glanced at Dustin as the young man shrugged. A door opened up in the dark cave as the two started to walk towards it.

"I… need a bath…" Anna muttered darkly as she picked off pieces of dark matter from her hair.

"Must… resist… urge… to… make… juvenile… comment…" Dustin giggled like a maniac.

"Shut up…"

_(Back to Orion and company)_

"DIE!" Dragon-Orion screamed as he lunged at Nina. Ryu jumped in front of her, trying to shield her from the breath attack the dragon let loose. Garr jumped in front of them and shielded them from the attack.

"There must be a way to stop him!" Nina yelled.

"There is…" Ryu muttered darkly.

"What…? RYU NO!"

"Orion!" Ryu yelled. "I will go with you! Just… don't… hurt them…"

"A wise decision Ryu," Orion said. The dragon reverted back to a man as Orion walked over to Ryu. "A very wise decision…"

"Yeah," Ryu smirked slightly. He frowned when he heard Nina sobbing in the back ground, the young princess being held back by the massive Guardian.

Orion extended his hand as Ryu took it. Ryu's nails extended and sunk into Orion's hand. The man gave Ryu a bewildered look a Ryu's hand charged with energy. He grinned as he turned back to Nina.

"Put a shield around you and Garr!" Ryu yelled as Orion started to flash with the energy that Ryu was pumping into him. Orion struggled to get away as Nina formed a shield. Ryu grinned and plummeted Orion with energy. The man screamed as he and Ryu were knocked back by some blast. Orion flashed and exploded as a pair of clawed hands caught Ryu.

Nina and Garr looked up and saw Kai holding an unconscious Ryu. Kai growled and vanished. Nina gave Garr a bewildered look. Garr shook his head and looked straight as a door formed in front of them.

"It's an invitation," Garr said simply as he walked forward.

"What happened to Ryu! Where did Kai take him!" Nina screamed as she followed Garr.

"He must be under a spell," Garr simple said.

"Solona's brainwashed him…" Nina whispered.

"One down…" Garr sighed.

_(Reis main room)_

Luna groaned as she reappeared in front of Solona. Solona smiled as she looked from Luna to Sora.

"Did you do what I commanded you to?" Solona asked.

"Yes. The dragon girl no longer has her powers," Luna said.

"Is there any way you can extract Dragon Drive from her?" Solona asked. "Without killing her?"

Luna sighed and watched the light in Sora's chest pulse weakly. She placed her hand on Sora's chest and felt the heartbeat weaken. "No, not without killing her."

"I see…"

"You see what, Solona?"

Solona jerked around and noticed a cloaked figure standing before her, a sword held in his left hand. Solona took a step back and grinned.

"Hello Onyx," Solona said. "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

TO BE CONCLUDED…

7


	16. Chapter 16

Standard disclaimer: I don't own it, etc.

AN: Well, this is the last chapter of Shin Ryuu Densetsu. This is also the last chapter of the series, unless you count Timeline Vacation, which is co-written with Catstar4. Originally, I was going to do another sequel, but I am just burned out on this one. I don't like to leave things unfinished, so I am finishing up the series, even though the quality of the writing has gone downhill since chapter 10 or so. There was much I planned for this part of the series, but life has a funny way of getting in the way.

So, it's been a blast and I hope you enjoy the last chapter of Shin Ryuu Densetsu!

Thanks everyone who reviewed. It's meant a lot to me :)

End Game

_(Solona's chamber)_

"It's been a while Onyx," Solona grinned slightly as the cloaked man walked over to the Master of Ceremonies. "I have a present for you…"

The cloaked man stood still as he watched a young woren male walk into the chamber, holding Ryu in his arms. He walked over to Solona and dropped Ryu on the floor at her feet.

"Good," Solona smiled. She made a gesture with her hand and caused Ryu to float up to her. She snapped her fingers and Ryu's eyes opened and flashed red. The young dragon jumped to his feet and lunged at Onyx, sword drawn.

Onyx jumped out of the way, parrying Ryu's swings with his own.

"What's it like, Onyx?" Solona asked. "Having your own son attack you?"

"Sorry Ryu," Onyx sighed as he backhanded the young man behind the neck. He caught Ryu as he slumped to the ground. He then turned back to Solona. He grinned as he advanced.

"This ends now, Solona," Onyx growled.

"Indeed," she said.

Luna jumped in front of Solona. "I don't think so!" she screamed. "I will defend my mistress… AURK!" Luna screamed as blood splattered everywhere. She weakly turned around and saw Manna, her sword ran through the elemental mage.

"Heh," Manna grinned, Vin, Kagumi, and Elly right behind her. "I know that many people wanted to take you out the box, but you being here will just cause more harm than good."

"You!" Luna growled darkly.

"You are not the first to take us on, and you will not be the last," Vin said.

Kagumi nodded her head.

"You're threat ends here!" Manna yelled. "Final JUDGEMENT!"

Energy surged through Luna, enveloping her entire being, before causing her to blink out of existence. Solona's eyes widened in horror as she watched Kagumi stand behind Elly as Manna and Vin stepped off to the side.

"As you were, boss," Manna said.

Onyx grinned and lunged at Solona.

_(Tunnel leading to Solona's chamber)_

"You lost your powers!" Rei cried.

"Mhm," Rena nodded as she, Kane, Rei, and Cat raced down the long hallway.

"But… why?"

"To save you, you baka!" Rena grumbled.

As they ran, they heard several voices echoing off of the cave walls. They came to an opening and saw Nina and Zeke running along the other passageway. They motioned for them.

"Ryu's gone!" Nina wailed.

"Kai's got him," Zeke explained.

"Now where to?" Cat asked in annoyance.

"Straight on, this tunnel's got to come out somewhere!" Kane yelled as he and the others started down the long passageway once again.

After what seemed like hours, but only minutes, they came to an open area. In the area, they way Solona sparring with someone. Rei tensed as he watched Onyx and Solona exchanging blow after blow with each other.

"Oh, wow…" Rena muttered.

Nina shook her head when she noticed Ryu on the ground, unconscious. "RYU!" Onyx looked over, and Solona jabbed quickly, and ran her sword through the man. He moaned and slumped to the ground.

Rena screamed as her eyes flashed. She jumped forward as her star necklace flashed and snapped off of her neck. It flashed and took on the form of a staff and Rena grabbed it. she swung down at Solona, who jumped out of the way and knocked Rena upside the head, sending her across the chamber.

Kai's eyes suddenly snapped open as he leapt into action. He lunged at Solona, who simply backhanded the woren. He lunged again, this time knocking her to the ground. She screamed as she blasted him.

Solona grinned as she stood up. "Now, all the players are in place. Rise, Ryu and Sora!"

Ryu screamed as he was forced to his feet. Sora moaned as her body floated in the air, the light in her chest pulsing wildly. Kagumi screamed as she started to glow. Against her will, she slowly walked over to Solona, who raised her hands in the air.

"Now, Lord Zeipher, I call you to this realm using the powers of an Endless and a god! Use the powers of the Brood to bridge the gap of time and space!"

Ryu's eyes flashed dark red as his hair changed from blue to gold. He staggered forward and plunged his hand into Sora's chest, and took out a glowing white sphere the size of a baseball. He then plunged it into his chest and screamed.

Solona smiled as walked over to Ryu. "Zeipher, is it you?"

Ryu grinned. "Yes, it is I. Thank you for reviving me. Now," he turned to Solona, his hand flashing red. "You have served your purpose."

"What?" Solona asked in confusion. She never got her answer, as Ryu then thrust his hand at Solona and let loose a blast of crimson energy right at her. She screamed as the energy engulfed her, then exploded.

He turned around and noticed Kagumi. He walked over to her and placed his hand on her head. They both flashed gold. The gold light around Kagumi started to dim, as the light around Ryu/Zeipher grew brighter. Soon, Kagumi's light faded, causing the young girl to collapse on the ground. He then turned around and vanished.

Nina screamed as Elly ran over to Kagumi. Rena stumbled over to Onyx and helped him up.

"Are you alright?" Rena asked.

"I'll… live," Onyx muttered darkly as he took off his hood, to reveal a man with dark brown hair.

"Sure Dad," Rena rolled her eyes. "She totally owned your ass…"

"Now what?" Cat asked.

"Is Kagumi all right?" Zeke asked.

"Yeah," Elly said as she helped Kagumi to her feet.

"We need to get out of here," Onyx said. "He will go to the surface."

"How…do we stop this guy…" Kai grumbled as he stood up.

"Katrina and Dustin," Onyx said.

Cat nodded. "Right!

_(Outside of the HighWind)_

Edo, Shoki, and Inaro stood outside of the ship as Ryu appeared in front of them. Edo nodded to the twins as they ran off into opposite directions of the your dragon prince. Ryu snarled as he looked at Edo.

"Hello Zeipher," Edo smirked.

"Ah yes, young Edward," Zeipher grinned. "Always the observant one, aren't you?"

"And you are always the dumb one," Edo grinned. Zeipher gave him a confused look, until he was hit with blast after blast of energy from the Lokhart twins.

He screamed as he was knocked back. He quickly recovered and lunged at the twins again. They both sidestepped him and lunged at him again. Over and over again, they grappled with each other, until finally, Zeipher screamed and blasted them back. The twins quickly jumped to their feet as Nina and the others came running out of Reis.

Zeipher grinned as he noticed the assembled Destined.

"You honestly think you can stop me!" Zeipher laughed.

"Yes! We can!" Cat yelled as she drew Oathkeeper.

"One sword alone cannot stop me!" Zeipher laughed.

"NO!" everyone turned around to see Dustin and Anna standing side by side, Dustin holding Oblivion high in the air. "Cat! Let us finish this foe off!"

"RIGHT!" Cat yelled.

"Ha!" Dustin and Cat stopped in their tracks. "Do you want to hurt your dear friend, Ryu?"

"N…no!" Zeipher screamed. He clamped his hand over his mouth. "What! You are still alive!"

"Kill me!" Ryu screamed. "Finish this once and for all!"

Cat and Dustin looked at each other. Nina cried. "Finish him off! SET RYU FREE!"

Cat and Dustin nodded as they ran after Zeipher. They both leapt into the air and slashed at Zeipher. The swords flashed brightly as they all fell to the ground. Zeipher screamed as Cat and Dustin plunged their swords into Ryu's chest and pierced his heart. Zeipher screamed as a dark energy separated itself from Ryu and floated in the air.

Manna raised her hands hand blasted the energy, the colliding energies resulting in a mighty explosion. When the light died down, Dustin and Cat came into view, both flashing brightly.

In front of them was a bright sphere of light. The light died down and floated over to Manna. She caught it and held it in her hands.

"Dragon Drive," she held it up in the air. Sora's body flashed once then died down as the young demi-goddess groaned and stood up.

Nina ran over to Ryu as he laid on the ground, motionless. She walked over to Ryu and gathered him in her arms. She cried as she held Ryu. His breathing dwindled down into nothingness. He weakly reach up and gently touched her face.

"I'm… sorry…" Ryu gasped.

"No…" Nina whimpered. "It's okay. I know what happened. I'm just glad your back…"

"Nina…?"

"Hm?"

"I… love… you…" Ryu whispered. Then the hand fell and went limp. She felt Ryu's heart stop beating.

"No…" Nina shook her head. "NO!"

Manna walked over to Nina and Ryu. "Nothing is what it seems."

"What!" Nina raged. "The bad guys are dead, but so is Ryu!"

Onyx staggered over to where Manna was standing. He stumbled to the ground and knelt beside of Ryu and Nina. Nina looked at Onyx with tears in her eyes. Onyx nodded and placed his hand over Ryu's chest. A gold light flashed from his hand and into Ryu's chest.

The young dragon screamed as he back arched. His eyes fluttered opened as he looked at Nina in the eyes.

Nina smiled. "I love you too, Ryu…"

Anna turned to Dustin. "Well, this is all swell, but I still don't have a way to get home!"

Edo stepped forward. "Maybe… I can help with that? I can give you a ride home on my ship."

"Really? Thanks!" she turned around and kissed Dustin. "It's been a blast!"

Rena grinned. "Now, at the risk of sounding incredible cheesy, let's go home!"

Cat rolled her eyes as she felt Kane wrap his arm around her waist. "That was cheesy Rena."

"Yeah," Manna sighed. "Really cheesy…"

_(Dustin's apartment)_

Dustin's eyes jerked open as he bolted upright in bed. He had just woken up from the oddest dream. He was some sort of world savior, right along side of Rena's friend Cat. They had battled dark demons and…

He felt a metallic and cold sword right under his hand. He eyeballed the sword as he picked it up and groaned. The dream wasn't a dream after all…

He could have been killed. He could have been trapped on Asparia…

"I had the chance to get with a hot cat girl, and I turned it down!"

Dustin screamed in anger as he fell back down on the bed and closed his eyes and grumbled for a few minutes. Dustin then noticed a dark shadow looming over him. He opened his eyes and stared right into the face of Anna, who was grinning.

"Hi Dustin…" Anna smiled.

The End


End file.
